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Gene Evolution - Fast or Slow?

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The genomes of eukaryotes are punctuated by long stretches of sequence which do not code for proteins or RNAs. Although some of these regions do contain crucial regulatory sequences, the vast majority of this DNA serves no known function. Typically, these regions of the genome are the ones in which the fastest change, in evolutionary terms, is observed, because there is typically little to no selection pressure acting on these regions to preserve their sequences.
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Mutations are changes in the sequence of DNA. These changes can occur spontaneously or they can be induced by exposure to environmental factors. Mutations can be characterized in a number of different ways: whether and how they alter the amino acid sequence of the protein, whether they occur over a small or large area of DNA, and whether they occur in somatic cells or germline cells.
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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Mar 13, 2026

Transgenic Rodent Assay for Quantifying Male Germ Cell Mutant Frequency

Transgenic Rodent Assay for Quantifying Male Germ Cell Mutant Frequency

Published on: August 6, 2014

Human Germline Mutation and the Erratic Evolutionary Clock.

Priya Moorjani¹, Ziyue Gao², Molly Przeworski^1,3

¹Department of Biological Sciences, Columbia University, New York, New York, United States of America.

|October 21, 2016

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Human evolution dating relies on the molecular clock, but new pedigree data suggests slower mutation rates. Accurately dating evolutionary events requires understanding mutation accumulation in males and females, which is currently lacking.

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Identifying DNA Mutations in Purified Hematopoietic Stem/Progenitor Cells

Identifying DNA Mutations in Purified Hematopoietic Stem/Progenitor Cells

Published on: February 24, 2014

Area of Science:

Evolutionary biology
Human genetics
Molecular evolution

Background:

The molecular clock, based on accumulated genetic substitutions, is crucial for understanding human evolution chronology.
Recent human pedigree studies indicate lower-than-expected germline mutation rates.
This challenges the established timeline of human evolutionary events.

Purpose of the Study:

To re-evaluate the translation of germline mutation rates from pedigrees into substitution rates.
To emphasize the need for a detailed understanding of mutation accumulation during development.
To highlight the complexities in accurately dating human evolutionary events.

Main Methods:

Analysis of human pedigree data to estimate germline mutation rates.
Dissection of the process of translating mutation rates into substitution rates.
Review of existing knowledge on mutation accumulation dynamics.

Main Results:

Germline mutation rates estimated from pedigrees are unexpectedly low.
Directly translating these mutation rates into substitution rates is complex.
Current knowledge on developmental mutation accumulation in both sexes is insufficient.

Conclusions:

The steady accumulation of substitutions, or molecular clock, may need recalibration.
Accurate dating of evolutionary events requires precise characterization of mutation accumulation.
Further research is needed to understand sex-specific mutation accumulation during development.