Suppressor mutation

A suppressor mutation is a second mutation that alleviates or reverts the phenotypic effects of an already existing mutation in a process defined synthetic rescue. Genetic suppression therefore restores the phenotype seen prior to the original background mutation.[1] Suppressor mutations are useful for identifying new genetic sites which affect a biological process of interest. They also provide evidence between functionally interacting molecules and intersecting biological pathways.[2]

  1. ^ Hartwell, L. H., Hood, L., Goldberg, M. L., Reynolds, A. E., Silver, L. M., & Veres, R. C. (2008). Genetics: From Genes to Genomes. New York: McGraw-Hill.
  2. ^ Hodgkin J. Genetic suppression. 2005 Dec 27. In: WormBook: The Online Review of C. elegans Biology [Internet]. Pasadena (CA): WormBook; 2005-.