Question: In human populations in Africa, two common alleles affect the
structure of hemoglobin, the protei…
In human populations in Africa, two common alleles affect the
structure of hemoglobin, the protein that carries oxygen on red
blood cells. What is regarded as the normal allele (the allele
common in European populations) is usually labeled A, and the
sickle-cell allele is designated S. There are three hemoglobin
genotypes, and the phenotypes associated with these genotypes can
be distinguished in a variety of ways. In one African population of
10,000 adults, for example, there are 3,000 AS individuals, 7,000
AA individuals, and 0 SS individuals.
(a) Suppose that these individuals were to mate at random. What
would be the frequency of the A and S alleles among the gametes
that they produced?
(b) What would be the frequency of the three genotypes that
resulted from random mating?
(c) Is the original population of adults in Hardy–Weinberg
equilibrium?
