Principles of Biology |
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Genetic variability is the result of random mutations While for most instances the parental chromosomes (homologous chromosomes) are largely identical, they always differ somewhat, because some of the genes are mutated in one parent, but not the other. These genes are referred to as alleles and sexual reproduction ensures random distribution of acquired mutations throughout a population. The distribution of such mutations or alleles in a population of a species can be tracked by Mendelian genetics. Mutations are also the source of genetic variability in mitosis and prokaryotic binary fission. H
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