Why Mutations Matter Flashcards
Is DNA replication and repair 100% accurate?
No
This would consume too much time and energy for an individual
Mutations provide the diversity that natural selection acts on
How did LCT Persistance come about?
There were bp substitutions making new binding sites for a positive TF
People with this mutation had more food and thus had more offspring
What is pastoralism?
Raising animals for milk
How do we select for desired traits in agriculture?
First, there are spontaneous mutations that generate diversity
Then we artificially select for desired traits to increase them and to reduce undesirable traits
How was corn genetically modified?
Modified to be larger, have more seeds, and have the seeds not fall off
How were tomatoes genetically modified?
Modern varieties of tomato plants produce larger, sweeter, and more colourful fruit
How were dogs genetically modified?
To have less aggression and more skills
How were horses genetically modified?
To be larger
How do we use model species to our advantage?
We use mutations in model organisms to understand biological processes
What is an operon
A DNA region responsible for making an mRNA with more than one protein-coding region
How do geneticists obtain mutations?
Spontaneous random mutations
Induced random mutations
Target mutations
How do induced random mutations work?
Expose many organisms to a mutagen to generate random mutations
Isolate the rare offspring with the desired mutant phenotype
How do targeted mutations work?
Replace the wild type allele of a known gene with a mutant allele
