Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Experiment Videos

A genetic uncertainty problem.

D Tautz1

  • 1Institut für Genetik der Universität zu Köln, Weyertal 121, 50931, Köln, Germany. tautz@uni-koeln.de

Trends in Genetics : TIG
|November 14, 2000
PubMed
Summary

Many genes show no obvious function when deleted, challenging biologists. This study suggests weak selection, not gene duplication, may explain this, requiring evolutionary-scale experiments for full understanding.

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Two orthodenticle-related genes in the short-germ beetle Tribolium castaneum.

Development genes and evolution·2013
Same author

Chromophore-assisted laser inactivation of even skipped in Drosophila precisely phenocopies genetic loss of function.

Development genes and evolution·2013
Same author

Evolutionary biology: evidence for sympatric speciation?

Nature·2006
Same author

A change of expression in the conserved signaling gene MKK7 is associated with a selective sweep in the western house mouse Mus musculus domesticus.

Journal of evolutionary biology·2006
Same author

When invaders meet locally adapted types: rapid moulding of hybrid zones between sculpins (Cottus, Pisces) in the Rhine system.

Molecular ecology·2006
Same author

A genetic map of Cottus gobio (Pisces, Teleostei) based on microsatellites can be linked to the physical map of Tetraodon nigroviridis.

Journal of evolutionary biology·2005

Area of Science:

  • Genetics
  • Evolutionary Biology
  • Systems Biology

Background:

  • Many genes lack observable phenotypes upon knockout, a long-standing biological puzzle.
  • Gene duplication and regulatory network redundancy are common explanations.
  • Recent analyses, however, do not support a strong link between gene duplication and functional redundancy.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To explore alternative explanations for genes with no obvious knockout phenotype.
  • To investigate the role of weak selection in gene evolution and functional masking.
  • To propose a biological uncertainty principle analogous to Heisenberg's.

Main Methods:

  • Systematic analysis of yeast genome project data.
  • Theoretical formulation of a biological uncertainty relationship.
  • Comparative analysis with physical uncertainty principles.

Main Results:

  • Data analysis did not support gene duplication as the primary cause of functional redundancy.
  • Weak evolutionary selection is proposed as an alternative explanation for unobservable gene functions.
  • An analogy to Heisenberg's uncertainty principle suggests evolutionary-scale experiments may be needed.

Conclusions:

  • The lack of obvious knockout phenotypes may stem from genes evolving under very weak selection.
  • Understanding the full function of such genes might necessitate studying them across entire populations over evolutionary time.
  • A biological uncertainty principle could frame the limits of gene function discovery through standard experiments.

Related Experiment Videos