Question

The allele for a widows peak hairline is recessive. Mulan has a widows peak. Both of her parents have widows peaks. What is the probability for Mulan to have a widows peak. Create a Punnett square

Answer 1

Based on the information given, we can assume that Mulan's parents are both heterozygous for the widows peak allele, meaning they each carry one dominant allele for a straight hairline and one recessive allele for a widows peak.

Using a Punnett square, we can see the possible combinations of alleles that Mulan could inherit from her parents:(attachment)

Each square represents a possible offspring genotype, with the letters W and w representing the two alleles for widows peak and straight hairline, respectively.

From the Punnett square, we can see that there is a 50% chance for Mulan to inherit the recessive w allele from each of her parents, which would result in her having a widows peak hairline. Therefore, the probability of Mulan having a widows peak is 0.5 x 0.5 = 0.25, or 25%.