Download Johann Gregor Mendel

Johann Gregor Mendel
The Father of Genetics
Early Life
• Born July 22, 1822
• In Heinzendorf,
Austrian Silesia
• Now Hyncice, Czech
Republic
• Cobbler’s son
• Many siblings
• Bright child
His Training
• Entered Augustinian
monastery in 1843
• Brunn (Brno), Austria
• Classically trained for
the priesthood
• Ordained in 1847
• Failed as parish priest
• Potential recognized
by Prelate
Further Training
• Prelate entered him at
the U. of Vienna
• 1851-1854
• Trained in mathematics
and natural sciences
• Returned to Brunn to
teach the boys in the
secondary school
• 1854-1868
The monastery garden then……..
The monastery garden in Brno today
His Epic Experiments
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Monastery garden
Pea plants
Controlled crosses
Recorded results
Studied 7 traits
1856-1864
Reported to Brunn
Natural History
Society in 1865
“Experiments with Plant Hybrids”
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The Principle of Segregation
Principle of Independent Assortment
Law of Dominance
Law of Unit Characters
Law of Unit Characters
• An organism receives two characters
(genes) for every trait
• One character comes from each parent
Law of Dominance
• In pairs of factors there may be different
forms
• One form always makes its effect known
over the other
• One is “dominant” while the other is
“recessive”
Law of Segregation
• Pairs of factors are separated during the
formation of gametes (sex cells)
• A sperm or an egg will carry just one factor
(gene)
Law of Independent Assortment
• Characteristics are inherited independently
from one another
• Where a blue eyed gene goes will not affect
where a skin color gene goes
• Exception – gene linkage (genes closely
located on same chromosome)
• Like passengers on the same bus!
Final Chapter
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Selected as abbot of monastery in 1868
Planned experiments put aside
Unrecognized in his own day
Recognized in 1900 by 3 independent
researchers: Hugo DeVries, Carl Correns,
and Erich von Tschermak
• Credited as discoverer of laws of heredity
• Died January 6, 1884