Question

in a population, 25% of individuals exhibit albinism which is a lack of production of the pigment melanin. it is caused by two recessive alleles (a). what is the frequency of the recessive allele (a) in this population? multiple choice 75% 0.50 0.75 0.25

Explanation:

Step1: Apply Hardy - Weinberg principle

The frequency of the homozygous recessive genotype ($q^{2}$) is the proportion of individuals with the recessive trait. Here, $q^{2}=0.25$.

Step2: Solve for the frequency of the recessive allele ($q$)

Take the square - root of $q^{2}$. So, $q = \sqrt{q^{2}}$. Since $q^{2}=0.25$, then $q=\sqrt{0.25}=0.5$.

Answer:

0.50