Question

The population of the Amish community in Pennsylvania

A) experience lots of gene flow with neighboring communities as they marry with other religious sects.
B) experience lots of genetic disorders due to the founder effect and selective breeding.
C) experience lots of new beneficial mutations that can help the species.
D) have experienced coevolution with the local environment, so they do not need modern technology to survive.

Answer 1

The Amish population in Pennsylvania has been affected by the founder effect, resulting in a high frequency of a rare genetic disorder called Ellis-van Creveld syndrome. This condition is characterized by dwarfism and extra fingers and short limbs.

Step-by-step explanation:

The Amish population in Pennsylvania has been affected by the founder effect, which is a magnification of genetic drift in a small population that migrates away from a larger parent population carrying an unrepresentative set of alleles. In this case, one of the original 200 Amish founders carried a recessive allele for a rare condition called Ellis-van Creveld syndrome, which causes dwarfism and is characterized by extra fingers and short limbs. Due to the small initial population, the frequency of this genetic disorder has increased significantly within the Amish community.