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Mechanisms of Evolution
Mechanisms of Evolution
Mechanisms of Evolution
of Evolution
Mechanisms of Evolution
There are several:
1. Natural Selection
2. Gene Flow
3. Genetic drift
4. Mutations
5. Non-random mating
Artificial Selection
Domesticated breeds have not
always been in their current
form. This change has been
achieved by repeatedly
selecting for breeding the
individuals most suited to human
uses. This shows that selection
can cause evolution.
Genetic Variation
individuals in a species carry different
alleles (An allele is an alternative form of
a gene (one member of a pair) that is
located at a specific positionon a specific
chromosome.
Any change in gene (and allele)
frequencies within a population or species
is Evolution
http://www.nytimes.com/1985/09/17/science/loss-of-gene-diversity-is-threat-to-cheetahs.htm
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Bottleneck = any kind of event that reduces the population
significantly..... earthquake....flood.....disease.....etc.…
An example of a bottleneck: Northern elephant
seals have reduced genetic variation probably
because of a population bottleneck humans
inflicted on them in the 1890s. Hunting reduced
their population size to as few as 20 individuals at
the end of the 19th century. Their population has
since rebounded to over 30,000 but their genes
still carry the marks of this bottleneck. They have
much less genetic variation than a population of
southern elephant seals that was not so intensely
hunted.
4. Mutations
Are inheritable changes in the genotype.
Provide the variation that can be acted
upon by natural selection.
Mutations provide the raw material on
which natural selection can act.
Only source of additional genetic material
and new alleles.
Can be neutral, harmful or beneficial( give
an individual
a better chance for survival).
Antibiotic resistance in bacteria is one
form.
Mutation is a change in DNA the hereditary
material of life. An organism’s DNA affects
how it looks, how it behaves, and its
physiology—all aspects of its life. So a
change in an organism’s DNA can cause
changes in all aspects of its life.
Somatic mutations occur in non-
reproductive cells and won’t be passed
onto offspring.
For example, the golden color on half of
this Red Delicious apple was caused by a
somatic mutation. The seeds of this apple
do not carry the mutation.
The only mutations that matter
to large-scale evolution are
those that can be passed on to
offspring. These occur in
reproductive cells like eggs
and sperm and are called germ
line mutations.
A single germ line mutation can
have a range of effects:
1. No change occurs in
phenotype.
2. Small change occurs in phenotype.