Resistance to the poison warfarin is a genetically determined trait in rats. Homozygotes carrying the resistance allele
Question:
Resistance to the poison warfarin is a genetically determined trait in rats. Homozygotes carrying the resistance allele (WRWR) have a lower fitness because they suffer from vitamin K deficiency, but heterozygotes (WRWS) do not have this deficiency. However, the heterozygotes are still resistant to warfarin. In an area where warfarin is applied, a heterozygote has a survival advantage. Due to warfarin resistance, a heterozygote is also more fit than a homozygote (WSWS) that is sensitive to warfarin. If the relative fitness values for WRWS, WRWR, and WSWS individuals are 1.0, 0.37, and 0.19, respectively, in areas where warfarin is applied, calculate the allele frequencies at equilibrium. How would this equilibrium be affected if the rats were no longer exposed to warfarin?
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