Question

If you have data on genotype frequencies at a locus for a population, what steps would you follow to determine if these genotypes are in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium?

a)Calculate allele frequencies from the observed genotype frequencies; compare to the genotypic frequencies expected under Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium
b)Use the Hardy-Weinberg law to calculate allele frequencies from the observed genotype frequencies; compare to the genotypic frequencies expected under Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium
c)Calculate allele frequencies from the observed genotype frequencies; use the allele frequencies to calculate the expected number of genotypes under Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium; conduct a chi-square test
d)You are unable to determine if the population is in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium without additional data.
e)Use the Hardy-Weinberg law to calculate allele frequencies from the observed genotype frequencies; use the allele frequencies to calculate the expected number of genotypes under Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium; conduct a chi-square test

Answer 1

To check if a population is in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium, calculate allele frequencies from observed genotypes, determine expected genotypes under equilibrium using the Hardy-Weinberg equation, and perform a chi-square test to compare observed and expected frequencies.

Step-by-step explanation:

To determine if genotypes at a locus are in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium, one would follow these steps:

1. Calculate allele frequencies from the observed genotype frequencies.
2. Use these allele frequencies to calculate the expected frequencies of the genotypes under Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium, which are determined by the equation p² + 2pq + q² = 1, where p is the frequency of the dominant allele and q is the frequency of the recessive allele.
3. Conduct a chi-square test to compare the observed genotype frequencies with the expected frequencies under Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium.

The allele frequencies in a population will not change from generation to generation if the population is in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium, and this assumption is based on a set of conditions including no mutations, migration, selective pressure, or genetic drift, and assuming an infinitely large population size.