What is the Difference Between Monohybrid Cross and Reciprocal Cross?

06/23/2025 • Felipe Moraes

The main difference between a monohybrid cross and a reciprocal cross lies in the number of traits studied and the role reversal of the parents involved in the crosses. Here are the key differences:

Monohybrid Cross:

It studies the inheritance of a single trait.
A single cross is done between two organisms.
The parents used in the cross differ only in a single pair of characters.
It is used to determine the dominance relationship between two alleles.

Reciprocal Cross:

It involves two crosses concerning the same character but reversing the roles of the parents.
In one experiment, parent A is used as female, and parent B is used as male; in the other experiment, parent A is used as male, and parent B is used as female.
It can study the inheritance of one, two, or more traits.
Reciprocal crosses are used to determine the sex linkage and maternal inheritance.

In summary, a monohybrid cross is used to study the inheritance pattern of a single trait, while a reciprocal cross involves two crosses with the same character and role reversal of the parents to study multiple traits, sex linkage, and maternal inheritance.

Comparative Table: Monohybrid Cross vs Reciprocal Cross

Here is a table comparing the differences between a monohybrid cross and a reciprocal cross:

Characteristic	Monohybrid Cross	Reciprocal Cross
Definition	A single cross between two organisms to study the inheritance pattern of a single pair of genes.	Involves two crosses concerning the same character but reversing the roles of the parents.
Purpose	Used to determine the dominance relationship between two alleles.	Used to determine the sex linkage and maternal inheritance.
Punnett Square	A 2x2 Punnett square is used to predict the possible outcomes and their expected frequencies.	The same Punnett square approach is applied, but the roles of the parents are reversed in the second cross.
Parental Roles	Either parent that differs only in a single pair of characters can be used as the male or female parent.	The same two parents are used, but their roles are reversed in the second cross.