A gene pool is the configuration of the sum of the alleles of each individual in a population. A comparison of the genotype frequencies from one generation to another indicates whether evolution has occurred. Gene pools that are not evolving are said to be in the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium (Campbell 456). The main objective of this human population genetics experiment was to examine the allele frequencies for the sample population of my biology class and predict genotype frequencies. I wanted to calculate the proportion of individuals in the sample population with ALU inserts to determine whether the insert is in the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. ALU inserts are small, repetitive sequences of DNA distributed through the genomes of primates. ALU inserts from human chromosome 8 of the tissue plasminogen activator (TPA) gene were selected because they are unwavering and reliable genetic markers, as most of them show no signs of being subject to disappearance or repositioning (Batzer 12288). My hypothesis was that the ALU insert would be in the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium because the five assumptions for the equilibrium of random mating, a large population, and no selection, mutation or migration seem to correlate with respect to the ALU insert in this random and diverse sample
A gene pool is the configuration of the sum of the alleles of each individual in a population. A comparison of the genotype frequencies from one generation to another indicates whether evolution has occurred. Gene pools that are not evolving are said to be in the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium (Campbell 456). The main objective of this human population genetics experiment was to examine the allele frequencies for the sample population of my biology class and predict genotype frequencies. I wanted to calculate the proportion of individuals in the sample population with ALU inserts to determine whether the insert is in the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. ALU inserts are small, repetitive sequences of DNA distributed through the genomes of primates. ALU inserts from human chromosome 8 of the tissue plasminogen activator (TPA) gene were selected because they are unwavering and reliable genetic markers, as most of them show no signs of being subject to disappearance or repositioning (Batzer 12288). My hypothesis was that the ALU insert would be in the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium because the five assumptions for the equilibrium of random mating, a large population, and no selection, mutation or migration seem to correlate with respect to the ALU insert in this random and diverse sample