Definition of "alleles" []

• Plural form of allele. (noun)

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• "Humans contain two copies of each gene, one from the father and one from the mother, which sometimes are referred to as the alleles of a gene."
• "In the world of genes, the occasional flaws in replication (mutations) see to it that the gene pool contains alternative variants of any given gene - 'alleles' - which may therefore be seen as competing with each other."
• "Breeding experiments in Norway with brown trout found that the genetic basis for large spots or very small spots, comparable in size to the spots of Snake River finespotted cutthroat trout, is due to different forms of a gene called alleles at a single gene locus."