Question

Of the three populations described below, each of which has 1,000 members, which population has the highest genetic diversity? Note that only one gene is present and that this gene has three possible alleles: A1, A2, and a.

Population A: 70% have an A1/A1 genotype, 25% have an A1/A2 genotype, and 5% have an A1/a genotype.
Population B: 50% have an A1/A1 genotype, 30% have an A2/A2 genotype, 20% have an a/a genotype.
Population C: 80% have an A1/A1 genotype, and 20% have an A1/a genotype.

Answer 1

Population B

Step-by-step explanation:

Genetic diversity is the diversity a population displays for a particular trait due to different genetic makeup of different individuals. This is possible because a trait can have two or more than two alleles which contribute to diversity. More the number of alleles and more their presence in a population, more will be the genetic diversity.

Here, the given gene has three alleles but their frequency is different in each population. Majority of individuals in population A and population C are homozygous for allele A1 which means that allele A2 and allele a have low frequency in population. These alleles have a greater chance of being lost from the population and the genetic diversity is low.

Population B on other hand has half individuals with homozygous A1 combination which gives other types of alleles more chance to appear in population. Hence the genetic diversity is highest in population B.