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Related Concept Videos

Genetic Variation01:25

Genetic Variation

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Genetic variation is the diversity in DNA sequences found among individuals of the same species. This diversity is crucial for a species' survival because it helps organisms adapt to environmental changes. Genetic variation begins with fertilization, where an egg and sperm cell merge. Each of these cells carries 23 chromosomes, up to 46 in the fertilized egg. Chromosomes are long DNA strands that contain genes, the basic units of heredity.
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What is Natural Selection?01:32

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Natural selection is an evolutionary process in which individuals with survival-promoting traits reproduce at higher rates. These favorable traits become more common within a population or species. Naturally selected traits initially arise via random genetic mutations. In order for selection to occur, there must be variation within a population, the trait controlling the variation must be heritable, and there must be an evolutionary advantage for variation in the trait.
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Because the DNA segments are cut and reorganized in a direction-specific manner, site-specific recombination has emerged as an efficient genetic engineering technique. Flippase and Cyclization recombinases or Flp and Cre, respectively, are two members of the tyrosine recombinase family derived from bacteriophages, that are used to mediate site-specific DNA insertions, deletions, and targeted expression of proteins in mammalian cell lines.
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Apart from the measures of central tendency, distribution, outliers, and the changing characteristics of data with time, an important characteristic of any data set is its variation or spread. In some data sets, the data values are concentrated closely near the mean; in others, the data values are more widely spread out from the mean.
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Mutation, Gene Flow, and Genetic Drift01:09

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In a population that is not at Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium, the frequency of alleles changes over time. Therefore, any deviations from the five conditions of Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium can alter the genetic variation of a given population. Conditions that change the genetic variability of a population include mutations, natural selection, non-random mating, gene flow, and genetic drift (small population size).
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What is Population Genetics?01:25

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A population is composed of members of the same species that simultaneously live and interact in the same area. When individuals in a population breed, they pass down their genes to their offspring. Many of these genes are polymorphic, meaning that they occur in multiple variants. Such variations of a gene are referred to as alleles. The collective set of all the alleles within a population is known as the gene pool.
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Developmental polyphenism in Pristionchus pacificus shows a mix of genetic linkage and independence. This balance influences the evolutionary potential of environmentally responsive traits, impacting morph induction and predatory effectiveness.

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Area of Science:

  • Evolutionary biology
  • Developmental biology
  • Genetics

Background:

  • Environmental responsiveness in traits, particularly developmental polyphenism, is crucial for organismal function and evolution.
  • Understanding the genetic basis of integrated traits is key to predicting their evolutionary trajectories.
  • The shark-tooth nematode, Pristionchus pacificus, exhibits a well-studied developmental polyphenism, switching between bacterial-feeding and predatory morphs.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the genetic architecture underlying the resource polyphenism in Pristionchus pacificus.
  • To determine the extent to which different components of this plastic trait are genetically linked or independent.
  • To assess how genetic correlations influence the evolutionary potential of coordinated traits.

Main Methods:

  • Creation of recombinant inbred lines (RILs) from natural isolates of Pristionchus pacificus with divergent morph-induction biases.
  • Quantitative trait locus (QTL) analysis to map the genetic loci controlling component traits of the polyphenism.
  • Association of genomic variation with phenotypic variation in morph induction, predatory effectiveness, and morphology.

Main Results:

  • RILs with higher predatory morph induction also showed enhanced predatory effectiveness.
  • Predatory morph induction and predatory effectiveness were associated with the same major-effect locus, indicating genetic linkage.
  • Morphological variation within each morph was independent of both morph induction and predatory effectiveness, and also independent between morphs.

Conclusions:

  • The genetic architecture of this coordinated plastic trait is a blend of linked and independent components.
  • Physical linkage of genes suggests coordinated selection on morph induction and predatory effectiveness.
  • The balance between genetic correlation and independence shapes the evolutionary potential of plastic traits.