The Origins of Genetics

What is the mechanism behind inheritance? At first, it was believed that there was a mixing of traits that occurred as a result of reproduction. Then, it was thought that certain hereditary particles existed in each organism that were modified and passed along during reproduction.

Gregor Mendel disproved both of these early theories when he meticulously bred and observed the traits of over 30,000 pea plants. Mendel determined that physical traits are determined by the inheritance of genes, and genes are passed on unchanged from parents to offspring.  The dominant gene from each parent determines the physical trait that is observed in the offspring. View 1866 – Mendel’s Laws of Inheritance from eMediaVASM to begin exploring the importance of Mendel’s laws of heredity.