Question

In cattle, coat colors are codominant. Red coats are represented as RR and white coats are represented as WW. When a red bull is crossed with a red cow, a heterozygous cow with a roan-colored coat is produced.

What would be the genotype for the roan color?

Answer 1

The genotype for a roan-colored cow in cattle with codominant coat color genes is RW, where one allele is for red (R) and the other is for white (W).

Step-by-step explanation:

In cattle, where coat colors are codominant, the genotype for a roan-colored cow, which is the result of a cross between a red bull (RR) and a red cow (also likely RR), is actually RW, where one allele is for red coat color (R) and the other allele is for white coat color (W).

In this situation, neither allele is completely dominant over the other, and the roan color occurs because both red and white hair are present, giving the mixed or roan appearance.