Question

Bored with life in Hayward, the CSUEB Astronomy Club builds a rocket and launches 100 students to a recently discovered planet capable of supporting life. Within this founding population it is soon discovered that individuals whom are heterozygous for the Flocus are not able to successfully reproduce in their new environment, and do not pass on their genes to the next generation (i.e., Ff has a fitness of o, while ff and FF have a fitness of 1). Given the genotype frequencies of the founding population shown below, what are the expected allele and genotype frequencies of the next generation? (for simplicity, assume that each reproductive individual makes 10 gametes that form the next generation).

Genotype frequencies of the founding population:
FF = 0.49 Ff = 0.42
ff=0.09
Expected allele frequencies of the next generation:
p =
q=
(note: p = F and q = f, please round answers to 3 significant digits 0.000) Expected genotype frequencies of the next generation: FF =
Ff =
ff=
(please round answers to 3 significant digits 0.000) 1. Given the allele and genotype frequencies you calculated in question 6 for the next generation, what do you predict will happen to the fallele in this population over time?

Answer 1

To determine the expected allele and genotype frequencies for a population where heterozygotes cannot reproduce, calculate the allele frequency of the homozygous genotypes only and then use the Hardy-Weinberg equation to predict the next generation's genotype frequencies, eliminating the non-reproducing genotypes. The expected frequencies are FF = 0.2401, Ff = 0, and ff = 0.0081, with predictions that the frequency of the f allele will decrease over time.

Step-by-step explanation:

To calculate the expected allele frequencies of the next generation given that heterozygotes (Ff) have a fitness of 0, we first need to eliminate the Ff genotype contribution to the next generation. Since ff and FF have a fitness of 1, the allele frequency of F (p) and f (q) can be calculated using the remaining genotypes FF and ff only.

Frequency of F (p) = frequency of FF = 0.49

Frequency of f (q) = frequency of ff = 0.09

Using the Hardy-Weinberg principle (p² + 2pq + q² = 1), we can find the genotype frequencies for the next generation:

Frequency of FF = p² = 0.49² = 0.2401

Frequency of Ff = 0 (given Ff individuals cannot reproduce)

Frequency of ff = q² = 0.09² = 0.0081

Therefore, it appears that the frequency of the f allele will continue to decrease over time since Ff individuals cannot reproduce, resulting in a continuing reduction in the number of f alleles passed to subsequent generations.