For our research project, we will be determining the potential phylogenetic relationship between six different species - mussel, shrimp, crab, lobster, octopus, and scallop - through protein gel electrophoresis.
In his Theory of Evolution by Natural Selection, Charles Darwin states that in order for evolution by natural selection to occur, heritable variation must exist among individuals in a population, and survival and reproductive success must vary within the population. When evolution by natural selection acts upon a population, the traits and characteristics that increase the survival of a species can be emerged, or emphasized, with the organisms lacking the favored phenotype dying off, and becoming less frequent in the population. Although the most notable, evolution by natural selection is not the only mechanism of evolution, with mutation, genetic drift, and gene flow also perpetuating evolution. Evolution can sometimes result in speciation, in which an ancestral species splits into two or more descendant species, each too genetically different to be classified as a single species.
95% of animal diversity is composed of invertebrates, or animals without backbones (GIGA 2013). Mollusca and Arthropoda are two of the largest groups of invertebrates, although the species included the phylums may not look alike. In this experiment, we will use protein gel electrophoresis to compare a variety of molluscs and arthropods in order to hypothesize a phylogenetic relationship between the species. The more closely related two species are, the more similar their genetic makeup should be, as they are both derived from a common ancestor.
References:
GIGA Community of Scientists. The Global Invertebrate Genomics Alliance (GIGA): Developing Community Resources to Study Diverse Invertebrate Genomes. Journal of Heredity. 2013;105(1):1–18.
No comments:
Post a Comment