Suppose that your mother has albinism, which is a recessive trait. Also suppose your father has cystic fibrosis, which is also caused by a recessive trait. And you learn that your father-in-law has albinism and cystic fibrosis. What are the odds that your first child will have either albinism or cystic fibrosis, but NOT both?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Given that albinism and cystic fibrosis are both caused by recessive alleles, a child would need to inherit two copies of the recessive allele for either condition to express it. Since the mother has albinism, she can only pass on the allele for albinism. The father, having cystic fibrosis, can only pass on the allele for cystic fibrosis. The father-in-law's genetic conditions do not directly affect the child's genetics in this scenario. The child will inherit one allele for albinism from the mother and one allele for cystic fibrosis from the father, making them carriers for both conditions but not affected by either. The probability of the child having either albinism or cystic fibrosis but not both is not directly calculable from the given information because the child will be a carrier for both without expressing either. However, considering a more general interpretation where we look at the chance of inheriting one condition in the presence of two carrier parents for different conditions, the calculation typically involves understanding the probability of inheriting one condition without the other, which is not straightforwardly provided in the question. The correct interpretation hinges on understanding genetic inheritance patterns, but the provided information leads to a misunderstanding in the calculation process.

Suppose That Your Mother Has Albinism, Which Is a Recessive