show/hide words to know
Gene: a region of DNA that instructs the cell on how to build protein(s). As a human, you usually get a set of instructions from your mom and another set from your dad... more
Inheritance: genetic information passed down from a parent.
Phenotype: the appearance of an individual that results from the interaction between their genetic makeup and the environment. Phenotypic trait... more
Trait: a characteristic of an organism that can be the result of genes and/or influenced by the environment. Traits can be physical like hair color or the shape and size of a plant leaf. Traits can also be behaviors such as nest building behavior in birds.
**Some of the content on this page is out of date, please pardon us while we update it for accuracy.**
Below is a list of phenotypes easily identified in humans that follow the pattern of Mendelian inheritance. Look at yourself in the mirror to see if you carry the dominant or recessive alleles for these traits.
Mendelian Traits In Humans
| Cleft chin (dominant) | Chin without a cleft (recessive) | |
 Wikimedia - cutehappybrute |  Wikimedia - David Tribble | |
Cheek dimples (dominant) | No cheek dimples (recessive) | |
 Wikimedia - C. Szeto |  Ask A Biologist - Jacob Mayfield | |
| Free (dominant) earlobes | Attached (recessive) earlobes | |
 Wikimedia - David Benbennick |  Wikimedia - Covalent | |
| Face freckles (dominant) | No face freckles (recessive) | |
 Wikimedia - Loyna |  Wikimedia - David Tribble | |
| No Hitchhiker's thumb (dominant) | Hitchhiker's thumb (recessive) | |
 Wikimedia - manic rage |  Wikimedia - drozd | |
| Widow's peak (dominant) | No Widow's peak (recessive) | |
 Wikimedia - ccupload |  Wikimedia - ccupload |
The expression of traits, however, is often far more complicated than in those listed above or those which Mendel observed in his garden. Sometimes tens, or even hundreds of genes can play a role in just one trait! In some cases, genes can block or exaggerate processes in the cell which change the visible phenotype. In other cases, environmental factors such temperature, light, and nutrient levels influence the development of a phenotype. Below is a list of traits in humans involving interaction between multiple genes.
Non-Mendelian Traits in Humans
| Eye color | ||
 Wikimedia - marc davis |  Wikimedia - pranav yaddanapudi | |
 Wikimedia - D. Sharon Pruitt |  Wikimedia - Pedram Amiri | |
| Hair Color | ||
 Wikimedia - Stephen Key |  Wikimedia - Marc Davis | |
 Wikimedia - Alvesgaspar |  Wikimedia - Nicolas Genin | |
| Ability to roll tongue | ||
 Wikimedia - Gideon Tsang | 
|
References:
List of Mendelian traits in humans. In Wikipedia. Retrieved July 20, 2010, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Mendelian_traits_in_humans
Additional images via Wikimedia. Close up of iris by Petr Novák.
View Citation
Bibliographic details:
- Article: Human Traits
- Author(s): Sabine Deviche
- Publisher: Arizona State University School of Life Sciences Ask A Biologist
- Site name: ASU - Ask A Biologist
- Date published: July 20, 2010
- Date accessed: April 17, 2024
- Link: https://askabiologist.asu.edu/mendelian-traits-humans
APA Style
Sabine Deviche. (2010, July 20). Human Traits. ASU - Ask A Biologist. Retrieved April 17, 2024 from https://askabiologist.asu.edu/mendelian-traits-humans
Chicago Manual of Style
Sabine Deviche. "Human Traits". ASU - Ask A Biologist. 20 July, 2010. https://askabiologist.asu.edu/mendelian-traits-humans
Sabine Deviche. "Human Traits". ASU - Ask A Biologist. 20 Jul 2010. ASU - Ask A Biologist, Web. 17 Apr 2024. https://askabiologist.asu.edu/mendelian-traits-humans
MLA 2017 Style
Eye color is not a Mendelian trait because it is controlled by several genes, in addition to other factors.
Coloring Pages
and Worksheets
Puzzles
Be Part of
Ask A Biologist
By volunteering, or simply sending us feedback on the site. Scientists, teachers, writers, illustrators, and translators are all important to the program. If you are interested in helping with the website we have a Volunteers page to get the process started.
