The Genetics of Feather Color in Chickens
Understanding Codominance in Chickens
In some chickens, the gene for feather color is controlled by codominance. The allele for black is B and the allele for white is W. The heterozygous phenotype is known as erminette,
Answer:
The question is incomplete, it lacks the main questions, those questions are:
a. What is the genotype for black chickens?
b. What is the genotype for white chickens?
c. What is the genotype for erminette chickens?
Explanation:
This question involves a gene coding for feather colour in some birds, in which the black allele (B) and white allele (W) is involved. According to the question, the gene coding for feather color exhibits co-dominance i.e. both the black (B) and white (W) allele are expressed in a heterozygous state (BW) to form an erminette phenotype.
Hence, if neither allele is dominant or recessive over the other. The black phenotype will only be expressed when the genotype is BB.
The white phenotype will only be expressed when the genotype is WW.
The combination of both alleles which results in the simultaneous expression of both in the erminette phenotype, will be BW genotype.
What is codominance in genetics? Codominance in genetics refers to a phenomenon where both alleles of a gene are fully expressed in the phenotype of a heterozygous individual. This means that neither allele is dominant or recessive, leading to the simultaneous expression of both traits. In the case of chickens with feather color controlled by codominance, the black and white alleles are expressed equally, resulting in a distinctive erminette phenotype.