ABSTRACT
2.1 Basic Concepts in Pedigree Analysis
There are two basic approaches to making inferences on the recombination fraction θ between loci from a pedigree; the Bayesian and the likelihood approach. In both approaches, the likelihood function plays a key role. Let F represent the pedigree information and θ (or r) be the recombination fraction between two loci. The likelihood function L(θ|F) is defined as the probability of having this (these) pedigree(s) when the recombination fraction is θ. In (1.1.1), we have already seen that for a given θ, the probability of having generation III in Fig. 1.1.3 can be obtained using a binomial distribution.
