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The ginger gene

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xlabhaoisexx | 17:40 Sat 21st Apr 2007 | How it Works
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how does it work?
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If a child has ginger hair, each parent must carry the ginger gene even if they themselves are not ginger.
For example Brown=B and Ginger=g
Two parents have brown hair, the obvious hair colour that the child will have is brown as both parents have the brown hair gene. This is not always the case, and so the child may get a different colour, in this case ginger. To write the genes basically you can say that Brown=B and Ginger=g. If two parents have brown hair and have a child that is ginger , it means that their hair gene is this Bg. This is because Brown hair is dominant so with overpower the ginger gene giving the parent brown hair. However if two parents have the Bg gene, the hair gene the child gets could be BB Bg or gg. If it gets the 1/3 chance of having the gg gene, the child will have ginger hair. If it gets BB or Bg it will have brown hair. Both Parents MUST have Bg or it wouldn't work.
If two parents both have ginger hair the child will be ginger.


It sounds complicated but i think that makes sense...
Question Author
wow thanx
What about if the Mother has Ginger hair but the father has Brown hair?
Question Author
It depends on what there other genes are i think
Both my mother-in-law and her eldest brother had ginger hair, their other three siblings had brown hair. However none of their children or grandchildren have ginger hair. Having said that, I have a neighbour who has a son with ginger hair (his brother is blonde) though neither the mother or father have ginger hair. There must be a recessive gene somewhere. Maybe my grandchildren will have ginger hair!
Question Author
yeh it always seems to skip a generation
The ginger combination is actually a one in four or 25% chance of coming up.

there are 3 combinations that would lead to a brown hair baby and one that would give ginger.

Ginger if mother provides ginger and father provides ginger.
Brown if mother provides ginger and father brown
Brown if father provides ginger and mother brown
Brown if father and mother provide brown

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