Explain homozygous and heterozygous ?

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If an organism has two copies of the same allele, for example AA or aa, it is homozygous for that trait. If the organism has one copy of two different alleles, for example Aa, it is heterozygous.Keep in mind that an organism can't simply be 'homozygous,' period. For each of the organism's thousands of genes, it is either homozygous or heterozygous at that genetic locus || Google baba ki jai 😅

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Homozygous and Heterozygous:

Homozygous and heterozygous are terms used to describe the genetic makeup or genotype of an individual for a particular trait or gene. These terms are commonly used in the field of genetics to understand the inheritance patterns and variations in traits among individuals.

1. Homozygous:
Homozygous refers to a condition where an individual has two identical alleles for a specific gene. Alleles are different forms of a gene that can occur at a specific locus on a chromosome. In a homozygous condition, both alleles are the same, either dominant or recessive.

Example:
Let's consider a gene for eye color, where brown eye color is determined by a dominant allele (B) and blue eye color is determined by a recessive allele (b). If an individual has two copies of the dominant allele (BB), they are said to be homozygous dominant for that trait. Similarly, if an individual has two copies of the recessive allele (bb), they are homozygous recessive for that trait.

2. Heterozygous:
Heterozygous refers to a condition where an individual has two different alleles for a specific gene. In this case, one allele is dominant and the other is recessive. The dominant allele usually determines the observable trait, while the recessive allele remains hidden.

Example:
Using the eye color example, if an individual has one copy of the dominant allele (B) and one copy of the recessive allele (b), they are said to be heterozygous for that trait (Bb). In this case, the individual will have brown eyes because the dominant allele (B) determines the phenotype, while the recessive allele (b) remains unexpressed.

Key Differences:
- Homozygous individuals have two identical alleles (either dominant or recessive) for a specific gene, while heterozygous individuals have two different alleles (one dominant and one recessive).
- In homozygous individuals, the expressed trait is determined by the single allele present because there are no alternative alleles. In heterozygous individuals, the expressed trait is determined by the dominant allele, while the recessive allele remains hidden.
- Homozygous individuals are more likely to pass on the same alleles to their offspring, while heterozygous individuals have a 50% chance of passing on either allele to their offspring.

Understanding homozygous and heterozygous conditions is crucial for predicting the inheritance patterns of genetic traits and studying the variations in traits among individuals.

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