Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun An environmentally induced, nonhereditary trait in an organism that closely resembles a genetically determined trait, especially a mutation.
  • noun An individual exhibiting such a trait.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun genetics A variation in an organism that resembles a genetic one, but has an environmental rather than a genetic cause, and is not inherited
  • verb genetics To copy a genetic variation through environmental manipulation

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[pheno(type) + copy.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

pheno- +‎ copy

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Examples

  • This is called a phenocopy, where an environmental factor induces an effect similar to a genetic mutation.

    It's more than genes, it's networks and systems - The Panda's Thumb 2010

  • This is called a phenocopy, where an environmental factor induces an effect similar to a genetic mutation.

    Pharyngula 2010

  • The beer analogy is wonderful for explaining phenocopy mutation.

    Archive 2007-07-01 Field Notes 2007

  • The beer analogy is wonderful for explaining phenocopy mutation.

    Hardly a day goes by... Field Notes 2007

  • The pathological similarity suggests that epigenetic processes may phenocopy the Familial Alzheimer's disease (FAD) mutations within sporadic AD.

    Elites TV PLoS ONE 2010

  • The pathological similarity suggests that epigenetic processes may phenocopy the Familial Alzheimer's disease (FAD) mutations within sporadic AD.

    Elites TV 2010

  • In addition to the pharmacological-phenocopy approach used here for study of the roles of CatSper in activation and hyperactivation of motility, we recently applied a chemical-genetic approach to extend our knowledge of the roles of PKA in the these processes.

    PLoS ONE Alerts: New Articles Anne E. Carlson et al. 2009

  • In this and other respects, HC-056456 produces a pharmacological phenocopy of the CatSper-null sperm.

    PLoS ONE Alerts: New Articles Anne E. Carlson et al. 2009

  • We also show that in wild type cells manipulations of sulfur metabolic flux phenocopy the enhanced growth rate of cells with more mtDNA.

    PLoS ONE Alerts: New Articles Heidi M. Blank et al. 2009

  • Thus prolonged incubation with HC-056456 produces a phenocopy of the lack-of-hyperactivation phenotype of the CatSper null sperm.

    PLoS ONE Alerts: New Articles Anne E. Carlson et al. 2009

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