processes Flashcards
what are the two types of variation in chromosome number?
- change in number of entire sets (polyploidy)
- change in number of single chromosomes within a set (trisomy)
why is variation important?
because there cannot be evolution without variation (it is the fuel of evolution)
what are the different sources of genetic variation?
- chromosome number
- chromosome rearrangements
- point mutation
- homeotic mutation
- transposons
- environmentally induced variation
what are the two levels where mutations are normally expressed?
- changes within a gene product
- changes in the regulation of a gene or its product
what can mutation in regulation affect?
the amount or rate at which a gene product is produced, or whether or not the product is produced at all
what can mutations in a gene product affect?
the amino acid constitution so changes folding
what are homeotic mutations? what genes do they affect?
mutations that transform the identity of one body part into another (affect hox genes)
what are hox genes?
genes that act during the impart identity to regions along the body axis
what are transposons?
sequence that produces special transposase enzymes that allow it to insert copies of itself into various target sites in an organism’s nuclear genome
what can increase transposon activity?
stress
what was Lamarck’s hypothesis on acquired characteristics?
- environment can induce change and we can inherit it
- will can change which characteristics are passed on to the next generation
how can epigenetics change genes?
- increased methylation: turned off
- decreased methylation: turned on
what are two examples of environmentally induced variation? what do these show?
- butterfly experiment: my manipulating temperature, can produce intermediate phenotypes between summer and fall
- ants: by changing nutrition, can induce size changes in ants
are mutations random?
no, they are only random with respect to the environment (internal mutations blind to the external environment), there are preferrable spots (hot spots)
what is the variation equation?
Different types of mutation in different genes regions and different types of genes can lead to different types of genetic and phenotypic evolution
what is an emergent property?
a property that only exists at more complex levels of organization
frequency of alleles is a property of ____, change in frequency is a property of _____, and interpopulation variance is a property of ______
population, population through time (lineage), multiple populations (community)
evolution is a phenomena that occurs at which level of organization?
population and lineage level
what is population genetics?
- concentrates on collections of individuals and their genetic properties
- studies origin, maintenance, and change of genotypic variation in populations and lineages
- utilizes models to study the processes that influence population genetic composition
what causes allele frequencies to change?
- inbreeding
- genetic drift
- natural selection
- mutation
- migration
what are single gene traits and what examples?
they are traits are affected by a single gene (not common)
- ex: cystic fibrosis
- sickle cell anemia
what type of distribution is usually seen for a trait? how is this possible?
-a bell curve (normal distribution)
- possible since have many genes with small additive or subtractive effects that combine with environmental/non-genetic effects
how can selection on population?
- stabilizing selection (more of the middle)
- directional selection (more to one side)
- distributive selection (more of the extremes and less in the middle)
what is breeder’s equation and what does it consider?
R = h^2S (considers the proportion of selection that is actually passed on to the subsequent generation)
what are the effects of reduction in population size?
- demographic threat
- genetic threat
where did conservation genetics originate from?
agriculture and animal husbandry
what are the genetic threats of small populations?
- inbreeding depression: non random assortment of deleterious alleles
- loss of genetic diversity: genetic variation is the “raw-material” for natural selection
- ineffectiveness of selection: natural selection is less effective in small populations
what is inbreeding? what does it lead to? why is it bad?
- breeding with a closely related lineage
- leads to identity by descent (IBD)
- bad since most deleterious alleles are recessive so more chances that they will come together