Kódominant

Kódominant is a term used in genetics to describe a form of inheritance in which both alleles for a trait are fully expressed in the phenotype. This means that if an individual inherits two different alleles for a particular gene, both traits associated with those alleles will be observable. Unlike dominant-recessive inheritance, where one allele masks the effect of the other, in codominance, both alleles contribute to the final outcome.

A classic example of codominance is blood type in humans, specifically the ABO blood group system. The alleles for blood type A and blood type B are codominant. If an individual inherits the allele for blood type A and the allele for blood type B, their blood type will be AB. In this case, both the A and B antigens are present on the surface of their red blood cells. The allele for blood type O is recessive to both A and B.

Another example can be seen in certain flower colorations. If a plant inherits an allele for red flowers and an allele for white flowers, and these alleles are codominant, the resulting flower will display both red and white patches or be speckled, rather than being a blend of pink. This distinct expression of both inherited traits is the hallmark of codominance. Understanding codominance is crucial for predicting inheritance patterns and understanding the diversity of traits observed in populations.