Genes that segregate independently do not influence each other's inheritance because they are located on different chromosomes. However, the expression of genes that segregate independently can still influence one another.
Walter Sutton discovered the connection between chromosomes and heredity. He proposed that genes are located on chromosomes and that it is the chromosomes that segregate and assort independently during meiosis, leading to the inheritance of traits. This laid the groundwork for the chromosome theory of inheritance.
Actually, the law of independent assortment applies to the behavior of chromosomes during meiosis, not mitosis. It states that alleles of different genes segregate independently of each other during gamete formation. During mitosis, chromosomes replicate and separate to produce genetically identical daughter cells.
According to the principle of independent assortment, genes that segregate independently on different chromosomes do not influence each other's inheritance. This is because the sorting of one pair of alleles during gamete formation is not dependent on the sorting of another pair of alleles on a different chromosome.
Independent assortment
Genes on different chromosomes assort independently of each other by dint of the fact that they are on different chromosomes. The closer a gene is to another on the same chromosome the more likely they are to remain together even with crossing over.
Crossing over recombines linked genes by exchanging genetic material between homologous chromosomes during meiosis. Unlinked genes are not affected by crossing over as they are located on different chromosomes and segregate independently during meiosis.
segregate independently
The law of independent assortment. This principle states that genes located on different chromosomes segregate independently of each other during the formation of gametes, leading to a random combination of alleles in the offspring.
The theory is known as Mendelian genetics, proposed by Gregor Mendel. It states that traits are determined by discrete units of inheritance (genes) located on chromosomes, which segregate during gamete formation and assort independently during inheritance.
The principle is known as Mendel's Law of Independent Assortment. This law states that during meiosis, different genes segregate independently of each other, leading to random distribution of chromosomes to gametes.
Homologous chromosomes segregate towards opposite poles of a dividing cell during the anaphase stage of mitosis.