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In biology, polymorphism [1] is the occurrence of two or more clearly different morphs or forms, also referred to as alternative phenotypes, in the population of a species. To be classified as such, morphs must occupy the same habitat at the same time and belong to a panmictic population (one with random mating).
An example of a botanical genetic polymorphism is heterostyly, in which flowers occur in different forms with different arrangements of the pistils and the stamens. The system is called heteromorphic self-incompatibility , and the general 'strategy' of stamens separated from pistils is known as herkogamy .
Polymorphisms can be identified in the laboratory using a variety of methods. Many methods employ PCR to amplify the sequence of a gene. Once amplified, polymorphisms and mutations in the sequence can be detected by DNA sequencing, either directly or after screening for variation with a method such as single strand conformation polymorphism analysis.
Examples of such traits include flowering time, drought tolerance, polymorphism, mimicry, and avoidance of attacks by predators. [2] [citation needed] Research usually involves a mixture of field and laboratory studies. [3] Samples of natural populations may be taken back to the laboratory for their genetic variation to be analyzed.
A graphical representation of the typical human karyotype The human mitochondrial DNA. Human genetic variation is the genetic differences in and among populations.There may be multiple variants of any given gene in the human population (), a situation called polymorphism.
Polymorphism is a general concept in biology where more than one version of a trait is present in a population. In some cases of differing counts, the difference in chromosome counts is the result of a single chromosome undergoing fission , where it splits into two smaller chromosomes, or two undergoing fusion, where two chromosomes join to ...
A well-documented example of polymorphism is Labrador Retriever coloring; while the coat color depends on many genes, it is clearly seen in the environment as yellow, black, and brown. Richard Dawkins in 1978 [ 3 ] and then again in his 1982 book The Extended Phenotype suggested that one can regard bird nests and other built structures such as ...
Frequency-dependent selection may explain the high degree of polymorphism in the MHC. [12] In behavioral ecology, negative frequency-dependent selection often maintains multiple behavioral strategies within a species. A classic example is the Hawk-Dove model of interactions among individuals in a population.