What organism was used by Thomas Hunt Morgan?
Drosophila
Thomas Hunt Morgan
| Thomas Hunt Morgan ForMemRS | |
|---|---|
| Died | December 4, 1945 (aged 79) Pasadena, California |
| Nationality | United States |
| Alma mater | University of Kentucky (B.S.) Johns Hopkins University (Ph.D.) |
| Known for | Establishing Drosophila melanogaster as a major model organism in genetics Linked genes |
What was Thomas Hunt Morgan’s experiment?
One day in 1910, American geneticist Thomas Hunt Morgan peered through a hand lens at a male fruit fly, and he noticed it didn’t look right. Instead of having the normally brilliant red eyes of wild-type Drosophila melanogaster, this fly had white eyes.
What did Thomas Hunt Morgan discover about DNA?
In brief, Morgan had discovered that eye color in Drosophila expressed a sex-linked trait. All first-generation offspring of a mutant white-eyed male and a normal red-eyed female would have red eyes because every chromosome pair would contain at least one copy of the X chromosome with the dominant trait.
What is Thomas Hunt Morgan known for?
Thomas Hunt Morgan, (born Sept. 25, 1866, Lexington, Ky., U.S.—died Dec. 4, 1945, Pasadena, Calif.), American zoologist and geneticist, famous for his experimental research with the fruit fly (Drosophila) by which he established the chromosome theory of heredity.
What organism did Morgan and his colleagues use to develop the chromosomal theory of inheritance What traits did they track?
Thomas Hunt Morgan (1866–1945) and his colleagues spent several years carrying out crosses with the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster. They performed meticulous microscopic observations of fly chromosomes and correlated these observations with resulting fly characteristics.
Why did Morgan choose these organisms?
Morgan chose the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster, for his genetic studies. What fruit flies may lack in charisma (depending on your taste in insects), they make up for in practicality: they’re cheap, easy, and fast to grow.
What is the significance of Morgan’s observation?
By painstakingly examining thousands upon thousands of flies with a microscope and a magnifying glass, Morgan and his colleagues confirmed the chromosomal theory of inheritance: that genes are located on chromosomes like beads on a string, and that some genes are linked (meaning they are on the same chromosome and …
What is Morgan experimental evidence about chromosome?
Thomas Hunt Morgan, who studied fruit flies, provided the first strong confirmation of the chromosome theory. Morgan discovered a mutation that affected fly eye color. He observed that the mutation was inherited differently by male and female flies.
How did Morgan explain his finding?
How did Morgan explain his finding? Linked genes were inherited together because they were close to each other on the same chromosome. The farther apart two genes were on a chromosome, the more likely it would be that crossing-over would occur between them.
What did Thomas Morgan do?
How does Morgan’s experiment prove that genetic traits are carried on chromosomes?
Morgan began breeding the white-eyed mutant fly and found that in one generation of flies, the trait was only present in males. Through more breeding analysis, Morgan found that the genetic factor controlling eye color in the flies was on the same chromosome that determined sex.
How did Morgan’s discovery differ from Mendel?
Through more breeding analysis, Morgan found that the genetic factor controlling eye color in the flies was on the same chromosome that determined sex. Mendel hypothesized that there were heritable factors, later called genes, controlling the development of those characteristics.
Who was Thomas Hunt Morgan and what did he do?
On September 25, 1866 , American evolutionary biologist, geneticist, embryologist, and science author Thomas Hunt Morgan was born. He is famous for his experimental research with the fruit fly by which he established the chromosome theory of heredity.
Why was Thomas Hunt Morgan interested in Drosophila?
Later that year, Morgan made an observation that eventually provided evidence in support of the chromosome theory. In 1910, Morgan was studying Drosophila at Columbia University to find what he called mutants, or individual flies that had atypical, heritable characteristics, such as white eyes instead of the normal red eyes.
Why did Thomas Hunt Morgan reject the Mendelian theory?
Much to his credit, Morgan rejected his skepticism about both the Mendelian and chromosome theories when he saw from two independent lines of evidence—breeding experiments and cytology—that one could be treated in terms of the other. Sex-linked inheritance of white eyes in Drosophila flies.
When did Thomas Hunt Morgan win the Nobel Prize?
Thomas Hunt Morgan (September 25, 1866 – December 4, 1945) was an American evolutionary biologist, geneticist, embryologist, and science author who won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1933 for discoveries elucidating the role that the chromosome plays in heredity.