Question

What is multiple allelism? Give an example.

Hint:

Multiple alleles contribute to genetic diversity and can result in different phenotypes, even within a single population.

Answer 1

Multiple allelism refers to the presence of more than two alleles for a particular gene within a population. Although an individual organism can have only two alleles for a gene (one from each parent), multiple alleles can exist in the population, contributing to genetic diversity. Example: An example of multiple allelism is the ABO blood group system in humans. There are three alleles for the gene controlling blood type: - I\textsuperscript{A} (A allele) - I\textsuperscript{B} (B allele) - I\textsuperscript{O} (O allele) These alleles can combine in different ways to produce four possible blood types: A, B, AB, and O.
Final Answer: Multiple allelism is the occurrence of more than two alleles for a gene in a population. A classic example is the ABO blood group system.