Int. J. Dev. Biol. 42: 501 - 505 (1998)

Vol 42, Issue 3

Special Issue: Developmental Genetics of Drosophila

Seven types of pleiotropy

Published: 1 April 1998

J Hodgkin

MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Cambridge, United Kingdom. jah@mrc-lmb.cam.ac.uk

Abstract

Pleiotropy, a situation in which a single gene influences multiple phenotypic traits, can arise in a variety of ways. This paper discusses possible underlying mechanisms and proposes a classification of the various phenomena involved.