how do they come about, how can they kill organisms
In: 1
Alleles are versions of genes.
Say, a flower-bearing plant will have a gene that encodes a bright yellow pigment protein in its leaves. But there’s also an allele of that gene that results in orange pigment. Or yet another different allele that doesn’t encode functioning pigment at all.
If that latter situation happens with a pigment gene, you might end up with colorless leaves, but an otherwise living plant. But what if the gene encoded something that was vital for life and/or development? Then that particular allele would be incompatible with life. Having it would be lethal.
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