Summary
Albino shells, devoid of pigment in their calcareous part and with a pale yellowish periostracum, occur in natural populations of Helix aspersa, and in our cultures seven spontaneous mutations have been detected. Five of these have been tested as to genetic homology and two are still young. All five mutants proved to have the same a recessive allele as the two foundation albinos from natural populations so that the mutation rate is extremely high. Albino and the ground shell colour locus C are distinct and not linked. In double recessive form albino inhibits colours due to C and also the uniformly distributed reddish dark brown colour due to U. Other effects of If, suppression of bands and of structural markings are not affected by albino. In single dose a is completely recessive as to effects on C but AaU(U, u) heterozygotes show attenuation of epistasis of U colour over that due to C alleles. Making use of this effect, it is shown that U and a are not linked. The locus M for intensity of band pigmentation is not linked to a and apparently also not to U.
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de Matos, R. Genetics of shell ground colour in Helix aspersa II. Albino, its mutations and interactions. Heredity 53, 21–35 (1984). https://doi.org/10.1038/hdy.1984.60
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/hdy.1984.60