As a geneticist, I can tell you that eye color is a polygenic trait, which means it's determined by multiple genes, with the most significant being the OCA2 and HERC2 genes located on chromosome 15. The inheritance of eye color is quite complex and involves the interaction of multiple alleles (different forms of a gene) that an individual inherits from their parents.
The OCA2 gene has two main alleles: the "brown" allele and the "blue" allele. The "brown" allele is dominant, while the "blue" allele is recessive. This means that if a child inherits a "brown" allele from either parent, they will have brown eyes unless they inherit two "blue" alleles. The HERC2 gene also plays a role, and its interaction with OCA2 can influence whether the "blue" allele is expressed or not.
Here's a simplified example of how it works:
- If both parents have brown eyes, it's very likely that their child will have brown eyes, as brown is the dominant color.
- If one parent has blue eyes and the other has brown, the child could have either brown or blue eyes, depending on the combination of alleles they inherit.
- If both parents have blue eyes, the child is more likely to have blue eyes, but not guaranteed, as other genetic factors can influence the outcome.
It's important to note that there are many other genes that can influence eye color, and environmental factors can also play a role. Therefore, predicting a child's eye color with absolute certainty is not possible without genetic testing.
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