Question

The Hardy-Wein-berg equation used to reflect genotypic frequencies in a population, is
$p^2+2pq+q^2=1$
Which of the following is indicated by the term $2pq$?

• A. There are two alleles for that gene in the population
• B. There are two genes in the population
• C. There are twice as many dominant alleles as recessive alleles in the population
• D. There are twice as many heterozygotes as homozygotes in the population
• E. There are two separate reproductive combinations that can result in the formation of a heterozygous individual

Answer 1

The correct option is E There are two separate reproductive combinations that can result in the formation of a heterozygous individual

• Hardy-Weinberg equation is $p^2$ + 2pq + $q^2$ = 1.
• Here p is the frequency of the "A" allele and q is the frequency of the "a" allele in the population.
• Thus, $p^2$ represents the frequency of the homozygous dominant genotype AA, $q^2$ is the frequency of the homozygous recessive genotype aa, and 2pq represents the frequency of the heterozygous genotype Aa.
• Further, it also states that the sum of the allele frequencies for all the alleles at the locus should be 1, so p + q = 1.

Thus, the correct answer is option E.