What is the law of independent assortment?

The law of independent assortment states that genes for different traits segregate independently of one another during gamete formation. This principle, proposed by Gregor Mendel through his experiments with pea plants, means that the inheritance of one trait will not affect the inheritance of another trait.

For example, if considering two genes—one for seed shape and one for seed color—each of these genes will assort independently into gametes during meiosis. As a result, an offspring can inherit any combination of traits for those genes, which leads to a great variety in genetic combinations in the offspring.

This law is foundational in understanding how genetic diversity arises and is crucial for predicting the outcomes of genetic crosses. The independent assortment of genes occurs during the formation of gametes, meaning that the alleles for one gene can be segregated into gametes in combination with any alleles for another gene, leading to diverse genetic possibilities in the resulting offspring.