Principles of Genetics and Breeding (1+1)

2.1.5 Significance of Mendel’s laws

• Mendel’s most important discovery is his law of segregation. Segregation is the essence of Mendelism and a fundamental rule of genetics.
• The law of independent assortment holds good only for genes present in different homologous pairs of chromosomes.
• Inheritance of genes, present in the same homologous pair of chromosomes, is governed by the phenomenon of linkage and crossing–over.
• Genes present in the sex chromosomes obey the rules of sex-linked inheritance.