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 white cow, a heterozygous offspring with a roan-colored coat is produced. What would be the genotype for the roan color? Question 17 options: RW RR Rw WW

Answer 1

The genotype for a roan-colored coat in cattle, where coat color exhibits codominance, is RW, resulting from a cross between a red-coated RR bull and a white-coated WW cow.

Step-by-step explanation:

In cattle genetics, where coat colors exhibit codominance, the genotype for a roan color would be RW. This is because when a red-coated bull (RR) is crossed with a white-coated cow (WW), their offspring will be RW which displays both red and white colors (roan). This is distinct from complete dominance where one allele completely overpowers the other, resulting in just one of the parental phenotypes being expressed.

The roan color in offspring is the result of codominance, where both red and white alleles are expressed equally in the heterozygote, rather than blending to form an intermediate phenotype as seen in incomplete dominance where different alleles partially blend to create a third phenotype.