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35. Carrier Frequency

Carrier Frequency

 

Carrier frequency describes the prevalence in a given population of germline mutations in a specific gene. A mutation carrier is sometimes called a heterozygote because two different alleles are present at a given locus--one with a germline mutation and one normal allele. Here, 2 out of 10 individuals carry a mutated allele at a particular gene locus, so the carrier frequency is 20 percent.