Silver Genetics

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Silver Genetics 101

“ONE IS SILVER, ONE IS GOLD”

An Experiment about the Inhibitor Gene in Feline Genetics

By: Tatyana Kalani

John Adams Elementary School

4th Grade

INTRODUCTION AND QUESTION

What makes a cat silver or not?

What is genetics?

-the study of hereditary transmission of characteristics in organisms

What is a gene?

-a hereditary unit that occupies a location on a chromosome and has a specific influence on type, such as the color of your hair

How can you get a silver cat and can silver cats be male or female?

HYPOTHESIS

What is a hypothesis?

Something that I think will happen, an educated guess.

My hypothesis is:

There must be a silver parent for a cat to be silver. If you breed a brown and silver cat, you will get 50% silver kittens. Silver cats can be either male or female.

PROCEDURE

How will I test my hypothesis?

I am going to test my hypothesis by doing the following:

1. Learn and study the Punnett Square and create a table as it relates to the inhibitor gene affecting the cat’s color.

2. Look at the litters of kittens raised, comparing the colors of both parents and the colors of the kittens.

Record and review the data to reach a conclusion.

OBSERVATIONS AND DATA

Punnett Square

i = brown gene I = inhibitor (silver) gene

(The inhibitor gene blocks the color pigment making the cat silver.)

Parent Colors:

Brown/Brown

Results:

100% Brown Kittens

Parent Colors:

Brown/Silver

Results:

50% Silver Kittens

50% Brown Kittens

Parent Colors:

Silver/Silver

Results:

75% Silver Kittens(25% Homozygous)

25% Brown Kittens

Parent Colors: Homozygous Silver/Brown	i	i
I	Ii	Ii
I	Ii	Ii

Results:

100% Silver Kittens

Actual Results

Brown to Brown

Litter Date	Sire’s Name	Sire’s Color	Dam’s Name	Dam’s Color	Brown M	Kittens F	Silver M	Kittens F	Other M	Kittens F	Total
1/15/02	Topaz	Brown	Amber	Brown	-	2	-	-	-	-	2
8/2/02	Corey	Brown	Monika	Brown	3	-	-	-	1(Blue)	1(Blue)	5
3/15/03	Garth	Brown	Baby	Brown	-	4	-	-	1(Snow)	-	5
4/1/03	Garth	Brown	Raindrops	Brown	2	-	-	-	2(Snow)	1(Snow)	5
5/2/03	Garth	Brown	Safari	Brown	1	-	-	-	2(Snow)	1(Snow)	4
2/7/04	Ischiron	Brown	Spirit	Brown	2	1	-	-	-	-	3
2/23/04	Fireball	Brown	Lucy	Brown	3	2	-	-	-	-	5

Brown to Brown produced 100% Brown or Non-Silver Kittens.

Both male and female kittens were brown or non-silver.

Silver to Brown

Litter Date	Sire’s Name	Sire’s Color	Dam’s Name	Dam’s Color	Brown M	Kittens F	Silver M	Kittens F	Other M	Kittens F	Total
11/18/01	Splendor	Silver	Bernett	Brown	2	-	-	2	-	-	4
3/10/02	Splendor	Silver	Lace	Brown	1	1	-	1	-	-	3
3/12/02	Splendor	Silver	R ena	Brown	1	2	-	2	-	-	5
3/26/02	Splendor	Silver	Saka	Brown	-	1	4	-	-	-	5
4/20/02	Splendor	Silver	Dehleon	Brown	1	-	1	-	1(Gold)	-	3
7/15/02	Slate	Silver	Cosette	Brown	-	1	2	-	-	-	3
3/12/03	Slate	Silver	Sahara	Brown	1	2	1	1	-	-	5
4/24/03	Silverado	Silver	Monet	Brown	1	-	-	-	1(Smoke)	1(Smoke)	3
5/13/03	Matalica	Silver	Mirage	Brown	-	-	1	2	-	-	3
6/21/03	Splendor	Silver	Mary	Brown	1	1	1	1	-	-	4
8/21/03	Slate	Silver	Lace	Brown	-	2	-	3	-	-	5
8/27/03	Splendor	Silver	Katanga	Brown	-	2	2	3	-	-	7
12/2/03	Jean Luc	Silver	Sahara	Brown	-	1	2	2	1(Snow)	-	6
1/28/04	Silverado	Silver	Silk	Brown	-	2	-	1	3(Smoke)	-	6
2/05/04	Samurai	Silver	Katanga	Brown	1	2	2	2	-	-	7
2/09/04	S late	Silver	Tara	Brown	1	3		-	-	-	4
2/15/04	Samurai	Silver	Pearl	Brown	1	-	1	-	-	-	2

Silver to Brown produced 50% Silver and 50% Brown or Non-Silver.

Both male and female kittens were silver, brown, or non-silver.

Silver to Silver

Litter Date

Sire’s Name

Sire’s Color

Dam’s Name

Dam’s Color

Brown

Kittens

Silver

Kittens

Other

Kittens

Total

11/4/03

Silverado

Silver

Polar

Silver

1(Smoke)

Results were not conclusive as there was only one litter available.

ANALYSIS OF DATA

What I learned:

When both parents are brown, the kittens were 100% brown or non-silver. Of the 29, or all of the kittens born in this group, none were silver. This proves that a cat must have a silver parent in order to be silver. Silver is a dominant gene so if a cat is brown it can not carry silver.

In the silver to brown group, 75 kittens were born. Of the kittens, 38 were brown or non-silver and 37 were silver. Thus, 49.33% or approximately 50% of the kittens were silver. Of the 37 silver kittens, 16 were male and 21 were female. This showed that silver cats can be male or female and the inhibitor gene is not sex linked.

CONCLUSION

Was my hypothesis correct?

My hypothesis was correct!

There must be a silver parent for a cat to be silver. If you breed a brown and silver cat, you will get 50% silver kittens. Silver cats can be either male or female.

INFORMATION AND CREDITS

Webster’s II New Riverside University Dictionary

The Bengal Bulletin Volume 17 Number 2 Summer 2003

The “New” Silver Bengal by: Dr. Linda Evans, M.D., M.P.H.

Stevens, Gloria. Legacy of the Cat. Raincoast Books. Vancouver , British Columbia 2001

Also:

Thank you to the following people who submitted litter results for my experiment:

Earl Shropshire, Natalie Sullivan, Rhonda Hauffe, Chuck and Connie Pealer, and Christina Dahleen. . . I LOVE YOU ALL!!!

A special thanks to my mom for helping type set my project.

Thank you to my dad and sister, Natasha, for helping paste my results on my board.

Thank you to all of the wonderful people at TICA and the shows for helping me learn and experience the wonderful world of Bengal Cats!!!!