heterozygosity

Thân thiện

A student examines a diagram of heterozygosity in a biology textbook.

Definition

Noun: The condition or state of an organism possessing two different alleles (variant forms) of a specific gene at a corresponding locus (position) on a pair of homologous chromosomes.

Usage

"Heterozygosity" is a technical term used primarily in genetics and biology. It describes the genetic constitution of a diploid organism for a particular gene. It is the opposite of homozygosity. * The heterozygosity of the plant for flower color resulted in pink blooms, a blend of the red and white alleles. * High levels of genetic heterozygosity in a population are often associated with greater adaptability.

Advanced Usage

• Population Genetics: In this field, "heterozygosity" often refers to a measure of genetic variation within a population. It can be observed () or expected under certain conditions ().
  • Scientists calculated the expected heterozygosity to compare against the actual genetic diversity of the endangered species.

Variants and Related Words

• Heterozygous (adjective): Describing the state of having two different alleles.
  • A heterozygous individual carries one dominant and one recessive allele.
• Heterozygote (noun): The individual organism that is heterozygous.
  • The heterozygote displayed the dominant trait.

Synonyms

• Genetic diversity (for a population context)
• Mixed alleles (informal description)

Antonyms

• Homozygosity (the state of having two identical alleles)

Học thuật

Noun

1. the state of being heterozygous; having two different alleles of the same gene