Final answer:
The likelihood of interference occurring decreases as genes come closer together on a chromosome, reducing the chance of recombination events between them.
Step-by-step explanation:
As the distance between genes begins to close the likelihood of interference occurring is lessened. Interference refers to the phenomenon where one crossover can inhibit the occurrence of another nearby crossover during meiosis.
This means that genes that are closer together have a lower chance of recombination because crossovers are less likely to occur between them.
When two genes are located in close proximity on the same chromosome, they are considered linked, and their alleles tend to be transmitted through meiosis together.
This is nicely illustrated in the example of a dihybrid cross involving flower color and plant height, where linked genes for these traits result in mainly parental genotypes due to the lack of crossovers.
As genes get farther apart on a chromosome, the likelihood of a recombination event between them increases since more points along the chromosome are available for crossovers. This does lead to more recombinant, non-parental genotypes, which increases the recombination frequency.
Geneticists use these frequencies to create genetic maps that reflect the relative distances between genes, helping to understand their position and linkage.