Barcode of Life

1. Barcoding could be useful in some situations for example, biologists could identify organisms
in the field,which would help with diversity. Restaurant owners could check fish to be sure they
get what is advertised, doctors could quickly diagnose parasites, and farmers could identify pest
species invading their fields and so much more.

2. Morphology helped scientists designate around 1.7 million species. Relying on morphology to
just describe life's diversity has its limits. Differentiating closely related species is so difficult that
taxonomists specialize in one group of related organisms.

3. The segment that was chosen comes from a gene called CO1. It contains 648 base pairs of
nucleic acid which helps to quickly read the DNA sequence. Mitochondrial DNA is also fitting as
sequence differences among the species are more plentiful than the nucleic DNA. The small
pieces differ from creature to creature making it difficult to differentiate the species.

4. Bacteria and archaea do not have mitochondria as they are eukaryotic organisms. In
conclusion, mitochondrial DNA can’t be used to barcode bacteria and archaea.

5. We would be provided with information about our health, disease risks, and other traits if our
genetic information was to be sequenced and stored in a database. This could also be
controversial and an invasion of privacy.

6. DNA barcoding often can’t distinguish between closely related species. That is something
that needs to be worked on to improve accuracy of the results.

7. The article overall was very interesting and I definitely learned a lot. What was most
surprising was how difficult it actually is to differentiate between the different animals. A mistake
could easily be made and you have to be so precise when doing that work.