Exam 3: Hereditary Influences on Development

What is the term for the notion that genotype sets limits on the possible phenotypes that an individual might display in response to different environments?

Kyrin has several relatives who are alcoholics,who are clinically depressed,or who suffer from schizophrenia.Kyrin has decided to have a vasectomy so that he will never father any children.He explains that his children would surely have a mental illness.Is Kyrin right?

What is the term for a person who carries two dominant or two recessive genes for a particular trait?

What is germline gene therapy?

Which disorder is attributable to a chromosomal abnormality?

Suppose that a researcher finds that pairs of identical twins are no more similar on a trait than are pairs of fraternal twins.What can you conclude regarding the contribution of biological and environmental influences to the development of that trait?

According to Scarr and McCartney,when are passive genotype/environment correlations most important?

Describe the difference between the terms genotype and phenotype,and provide a single example that illustrates both concepts.

Some women display recessive sex-linked traits such as colour blindness.When this occurs,what can you infer about the genotype and phenotype for each of the parents?

Given that you know the heritability coefficient for a specific trait or characteristic,what can you conclude?

In comparison to ethologists,what is the best characterization of the position of behavioural geneticists?

What is meiosis?

Down syndrome is a genetic disorder that illustrates how the expression of an individual's genetic code can be influenced by environmental conditions.What have researchers found regarding the treatment of Down syndrome?

We typically associate genetic mutations with maladaptive outcomes,but evolutionary theorists believe some of these mutations may actually be beneficial.Provide an example that supports the evolutionary position.

If identical twins reared together are more alike on a characteristic than identical twins reared apart,what can you infer regarding the relative roles of heredity and environment in determining that characteristic?

What do behavioural geneticists study?

Suppose that the similarity between pairs of individuals increases for a trait the closer the individuals are in kinship.What can you conclude regarding the relative influence of heredity and environment on the trait?

Why are selective breeding studies not conducted with humans?

What did both Waddington and Gottesman emphasize as being important to the interaction of heredity and environment in development?

Suppose that you and your partner are both carriers for a genetic defect that causes a fatal metabolic disorder.Which prenatal testing procedure would give the earliest and most informative results regarding the health of your unborn child?