---
OA_place: publisher
OA_type: hybrid
PlanS_conform: '1'
_id: '21841'
abstract:
- lang: eng
text: The long-standing notion that genotypes map to phenotypes through simple one
gene–one trait relationships continues to shape both research in the life sciences
and public understanding, with implications for policy and funding priorities.
Yet this paradigm is increasingly recognized as inadequate for explaining continuous
phenotypic variation and the complex genetic architectures of the genotype–phenotype
map. Modern genetics emerged from the early 20th-century synthesis of Mendelian
and biometric schools of heredity, with R.A. Fisher demonstrating early on how
multiple discrete loci could collectively produce continuous variation. Despite
this fundamental insight, Mendelism—with its focus on single genes and standardized
genetic backgrounds—became the dominant framework, shaping current genetics research
and molecular biology as well as science education. The advent of large-scale
genomic data has revealed yet again the limitations of this reductionist approach.
Evidence from quantitative genetics now shows that most phenotypes arise from
complex networks of many interdependent genes and their dynamic responses to environmental
perturbations. Here we trace the historical roots of how Mendelian classical genetics
departed from the biometric school to create the current predominant paradigm
in genetics, despite fundamentally unresolved issues. Moving on from this one-sided
paradigm will require systematic development of integrative, evolutionarily grounded
experimental approaches that better capture the multigenic and context-dependent
nature of inheritance. Achieving such an extended perspective will require methodological
innovation, including advances in large-scale (e.g. automated) phenotyping. Dedicated
research programs will be necessary to advance a new era of genetic research into
the complex mechanisms underlying phenotypic variation.
acknowledgement: We thank a variety of further colleagues for the many inspiring discussions
on the nature of heredity, especially the workshops in Berlin. Special thanks also
to the Stellenbosch Institute for Advanced Studies (STIAS) to provide DT the leisure
and freedom to write up the first version of this perspective. Thanks also to three
reviewers who have helped to improve the manuscript. Two dedicated symposia on the
topic were funded by the Max-Planck Society.
article_number: iyag024
article_processing_charge: Yes (in subscription journal)
article_type: original
author:
- first_name: Diethard
full_name: Tautz, Diethard
last_name: Tautz
- first_name: Luisa F
full_name: Pallares, Luisa F
last_name: Pallares
- first_name: Leif
full_name: Andersson, Leif
last_name: Andersson
- first_name: Neda
full_name: Barghi, Neda
last_name: Barghi
- first_name: Nicholas H
full_name: Barton, Nicholas H
id: 4880FE40-F248-11E8-B48F-1D18A9856A87
last_name: Barton
orcid: 0000-0002-8548-5240
- first_name: Rachael
full_name: Bay, Rachael
last_name: Bay
- first_name: Yingguang Frank
full_name: Chan, Yingguang Frank
last_name: Chan
- first_name: Angela
full_name: Hancock, Angela
last_name: Hancock
- first_name: Tobias S
full_name: Kaiser, Tobias S
last_name: Kaiser
- first_name: Daniel
full_name: Koenig, Daniel
last_name: Koenig
- first_name: Zacharias
full_name: Kontarakis, Zacharias
last_name: Kontarakis
- first_name: Miriam
full_name: Liedvogel, Miriam
last_name: Liedvogel
- first_name: Juliette
full_name: de Meaux, Juliette
last_name: de Meaux
- first_name: Magnus
full_name: Nordborg, Magnus
last_name: Nordborg
- first_name: Abraham A
full_name: Palmer, Abraham A
last_name: Palmer
- first_name: Michael
full_name: Purugganan, Michael
last_name: Purugganan
- first_name: Christian
full_name: Schlötterer, Christian
last_name: Schlötterer
- first_name: Karl
full_name: Schmid, Karl
last_name: Schmid
- first_name: Didier Y R
full_name: Stainier, Didier Y R
last_name: Stainier
- first_name: Detlef
full_name: Weigel, Detlef
last_name: Weigel
- first_name: Jochen B W
full_name: Wolf, Jochen B W
last_name: Wolf
- first_name: Dieter
full_name: Ebert, Dieter
last_name: Ebert
- first_name: Greg
full_name: Gibson, Greg
last_name: Gibson
citation:
ama: 'Tautz D, Pallares LF, Andersson L, et al. Beyond Mendel: A call to revisit
the genotype–phenotype map through new experimental paradigms. Genetics.
2026;232(4). doi:10.1093/genetics/iyag024'
apa: 'Tautz, D., Pallares, L. F., Andersson, L., Barghi, N., Barton, N. H., Bay,
R., … Gibson, G. (2026). Beyond Mendel: A call to revisit the genotype–phenotype
map through new experimental paradigms. Genetics. Oxford University Press.
https://doi.org/10.1093/genetics/iyag024'
chicago: 'Tautz, Diethard, Luisa F Pallares, Leif Andersson, Neda Barghi, Nicholas
H Barton, Rachael Bay, Yingguang Frank Chan, et al. “Beyond Mendel: A Call to
Revisit the Genotype–Phenotype Map through New Experimental Paradigms.” Genetics.
Oxford University Press, 2026. https://doi.org/10.1093/genetics/iyag024.'
ieee: 'D. Tautz et al., “Beyond Mendel: A call to revisit the genotype–phenotype
map through new experimental paradigms,” Genetics, vol. 232, no. 4. Oxford
University Press, 2026.'
ista: 'Tautz D, Pallares LF, Andersson L, Barghi N, Barton NH, Bay R, Chan YF, Hancock
A, Kaiser TS, Koenig D, Kontarakis Z, Liedvogel M, de Meaux J, Nordborg M, Palmer
AA, Purugganan M, Schlötterer C, Schmid K, Stainier DYR, Weigel D, Wolf JBW, Ebert
D, Gibson G. 2026. Beyond Mendel: A call to revisit the genotype–phenotype map
through new experimental paradigms. Genetics. 232(4), iyag024.'
mla: 'Tautz, Diethard, et al. “Beyond Mendel: A Call to Revisit the Genotype–Phenotype
Map through New Experimental Paradigms.” Genetics, vol. 232, no. 4, iyag024,
Oxford University Press, 2026, doi:10.1093/genetics/iyag024.'
short: D. Tautz, L.F. Pallares, L. Andersson, N. Barghi, N.H. Barton, R. Bay, Y.F.
Chan, A. Hancock, T.S. Kaiser, D. Koenig, Z. Kontarakis, M. Liedvogel, J. de Meaux,
M. Nordborg, A.A. Palmer, M. Purugganan, C. Schlötterer, K. Schmid, D.Y.R. Stainier,
D. Weigel, J.B.W. Wolf, D. Ebert, G. Gibson, Genetics 232 (2026).
date_created: 2026-05-07T08:53:40Z
date_published: 2026-04-01T00:00:00Z
date_updated: 2026-05-18T07:51:26Z
day: '01'
ddc:
- '570'
department:
- _id: NiBa
doi: 10.1093/genetics/iyag024
external_id:
pmid:
- '41701356'
file:
- access_level: open_access
checksum: 5a862c539f9dec4511277ad8927c549c
content_type: application/pdf
creator: dernst
date_created: 2026-05-18T07:48:45Z
date_updated: 2026-05-18T07:48:45Z
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file_name: 2026_Genetics_Tautz.pdf
file_size: 542844
relation: main_file
success: 1
file_date_updated: 2026-05-18T07:48:45Z
fulldoi: https://doi.org/10.1093/genetics/iyag024
has_accepted_license: '1'
intvolume: ' 232'
issue: '4'
keyword:
- classic genetics
- quantitative genetics
- genotype–phenotype map
language:
- iso: eng
month: '04'
oa: 1
oa_version: Published Version
pmid: 1
publication: Genetics
publication_identifier:
eissn:
- 1943-2631
publication_status: published
publisher: Oxford University Press
quality_controlled: '1'
scopus_import: '1'
status: public
title: 'Beyond Mendel: A call to revisit the genotype–phenotype map through new experimental
paradigms'
tmp:
image: /images/cc_by.png
legal_code_url: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode
name: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Public License (CC-BY 4.0)
short: CC BY (4.0)
type: journal_article
user_id: 2DF688A6-F248-11E8-B48F-1D18A9856A87
volume: 232
year: '2026'
...