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Question 61 of 68

Q.What is criss-cross inheritance ? Give example.

Tamil Nadu DgeTamil Nadu HSC (DGE) Board 2025Subjective· 3mImportance★★★★★
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Criss-cross inheritance describes how X-linked traits pass diagonally across generations -- from father to daughter (as a carrier) and then to her sons -- rather than directly from father to son.

For genes located on the X chromosome, inheritance follows a characteristic pattern because males (XY) have only one X chromosome (inherited from their mother) while females (XX) have two (one from each parent). A recessive X-linked trait present in a father is passed, via his X chromosome, to all his daughters (who become carriers if they inherit a normal dominant allele on their other X, or are affected if homozygous recessive), but never directly to his sons (who receive his Y chromosome, not his X). If a daughter who is a carrier then has sons, each of her sons has a 50% chance of inheriting the X-linked recessive allele from her and expressing the trait (since males have no second X to mask it). This 'zig-zag' pattern -- father to daughter to grandson -- is called criss-cross inheritance. It was first clearly demonstrated by Thomas Hunt Morgan in his studies of white-eye colour in …

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