allele frequency
a measure of how common a certain allele is in the population
Allele frequency refers to the proportion of different alleles of a particular gene in a population. Alleles are alternative versions of a gene that can produce different traits. For example, in a given population, a particular gene may have two different alleles: A and a. If the A allele occurs in 80% of the population and the a allele occurs in 20%, then the allele frequency of A is 0.8 and the allele frequency of a is 0.2.
Allele frequencies can change over time due to factors such as mutation, migration, genetic drift, and natural selection. For example, if a mutation occurs that results in a new allele for a particular gene, and this allele provides a selective advantage, it may increase in frequency over time. On the other hand, genetic drift can cause random fluctuations in allele frequency in a population, especially in small populations. Migration can also introduce new alleles into a population from other populations.
Knowing the allele frequencies in a population can provide important information for studying genetic variation and understanding the genetic basis of diseases. Additionally, allele frequencies can be used to calculate various genetic parameters, such as the expected heterozygosity or the genetic distance between populations.
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