Question

Where do a large proportion of recessive alleles exist in a population at Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium?

Options

• In homozygous dominant individuals (p²)

• In homozygous recessive individuals (q²)

• In carrier heterozygotes (2pq)

• Outside the population as latent mutations

Answer 1

The Hardy-Weinberg principle shows that a large proportion of recessive alleles exist in carrier heterozygotes (2pq) rather than in homozygous recessive individuals (q²). This is biologically significant because heterozygotes maintain a substantial source of genetic variability while masking recessive phenotypes.