EPISTATIC GENE


Meaning of EPISTATIC GENE in English

in genetics, a gene that determines whether or not a trait will be expressed. The system of genes that determines skin colour in man, for example, is independent of the gene responsible for albinism (lack of pigment) or the development of skin colour. This gene is an epistatic gene. When the albino condition occurs, the genes that determine skin colour are present but not expressed.

Britannica English vocabulary.      Английский словарь Британика.