How is Mendel's Law observed in meiosis?


Quick Answer

Mendel's Law is observed in meiosis because modern scientists are fully aware of chromosomes and genes, and paired chromosomes separate during meiosis. In this way gene pairs are segregated, proving Mendel's Law of Segregation beyond doubt.

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Full Answer

While Gregor Mendel's Law of Segregation is perhaps his most well known, the famous monk and scientist postulated three laws of inheritance. They are:

  • The law of Dominance, which states that a very dominant trait always appears in the offspring of the host.
  • The law of Segregation, which states that while a parent may have two alleles for a certain gene, these alleles are separated from each other during meiosis.
  • The Law of Independent Assortment, which states that the way an allele pair is segregated during meiosis has no effect on how other pairs are separated.

Mendel's three famous hypotheses elegantly explained genetics to a generation that was wholly ignorant of chromosomes and genes in the way that modern geneticists understand them.

The duplication of a cell results in the duplication of DNA as it divides twice to produce four reproductive cells. It is this process that is known as meiosis.

Despite the fact that modern scientists now have an infinitely greater understanding of the cell division process in all sexually-reproducing eukaryotes, Mendel's groundbreaking work ensured that he gained great fame posthumously. He is often referred to as the father of the modern science of genetics.

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