In a Dihybrid cross, how many gametes can each parent produce?

In a Dihybrid cross, each parent organism can produce four unique gametes when considering two traits, each with two alleles. This is due to the principle of independent assortment, which states that alleles for different genes segregate independently during gamete formation.

To understand this, consider a parent organism that has two traits, with each trait represented by two different alleles. For example, let's say one trait is seed shape (round or wrinkled) and the other is seed color (yellow or green). If we denote the shape alleles as R (round) and r (wrinkled) and the color alleles as Y (yellow) and y (green), then the possible gametes produced by this parent would be a combination of these alleles.

The possible combinations of alleles for the two traits are:

1. RY (round and yellow)

2. Ry (round and green)

3. rY (wrinkled and yellow)

4. ry (wrinkled and green)

Thus, a parent with these two traits can produce four distinct gametes. This concept applies to any dihybrid cross involving two traits with two alleles each, leading to the conclusion that each parent can generate four unique