Genetics is commonly seen as being grouped into several general areas: transmission, molecular, and population/evolution. Which biological processes are studied in transmission genetics?

Transmission genetics is a subfield of genetics that focuses on the transmission of genetic information from one generation to the next. This branch explores the patterns of inheritance, the role of chromosomes in carrying genes, and how these genes are expressed in organisms. Here, we'll discuss the biological processes that transmission genetics studies.

One of the primary processes studied in transmission genetics is known as Mendelian inheritance, named after the pioneering work of Gregor Mendel. Mendelian inheritance describes the patterns of inheritance of single-gene traits through the principle of dominance. This principle states that one allele (variation of a gene) may dominate over another, resulting in a specific phenotype (physical trait) being expressed.

Linkage refers to the phenomenon where genes located close together on the same chromosome are more likely to be inherited together. Transmission genetics studies how these linked genes are passed on through generations and how different factors can affect their inheritance patterns. Recombination is a process that occurs during meiosis, where genetic material from parental chromosomes are exchanged, creating new combinations of alleles. Transmission genetics examines how this exchange affects the inheritance patterns of genes.

In sex-linked inheritance, certain genes are located on the sex chromosomes (X and Y chromosomes in mammals) and thus have unique inheritance patterns. Transmission genetics investigates the inheritance of sex-linked traits through studying the patterns of X and Y chromosome inheritance in males and females, as well as how those patterns differ between the sexes.

Epistasis is a phenomenon where the effect of one gene is influenced by the presence of another gene. Transmission genetics aims to understand how these gene interactions occur and how they impact on the inheritance of traits. Researchers study various epistatic relationships and investigate how different genes can interact with each other to produce a particular phenotype.

Some inheritance patterns do not follow the Mendelian principles (e.g., dominance or recessive inheritance). These patterns, known as non-Mendelian inheritance, are also studied in transmission genetics. Examples of non-Mendelian inheritance include incomplete dominance, codominance, and polygenic inheritance, where multiple genes contribute to a single trait, leading to a wide range of phenotypic variation. In conclusion, transmission genetics focuses on the study of various biological processes related to the transmission of genetic information from one generation to another, including Mendelian inheritance, linkage and recombination, sex-linked inheritance, gene interactions, and non-Mendelian inheritance patterns.