1. Explain the significance of Mendel.
Gregor Mendel's experiment of breeding pea plants showed that traits from parents are present in the offspring. His tests supported Darwin's theory of "blending inheritance." It was later proved that the changes in the pea plants were due to the changes in the DNA through generations.
2. Draw the structure of DNA and who discovered this structure.
James D. Watson and Francis Crick discovered the structure of a double helix.
3. Explain each of the five examples of variations that occur to DNA and give an example of each.
a. Point Mutation - a single base pair change. the mutation inactivates a gene for a signaling molecule.
ex. Dogs are moderately more muscular when only one copy of the gene is disabled.
b. Insertion- when multiple base-pair sequences are inserted into a gene.
ex. when 800 base-pair sequences are inserted into a pea produces peas that are wrinkled rather then smooth. The intruding DNA disables a a gene necessary for starch synthesis, affecting the sugar and water content.
c. Gene-Copy number- When you copy errors during cell division to duplicate entire genes.
ex. where the enzyme salivary amylase is copied 10x more in humans than chimpanzees, making humans the better starch digestors.
4. What is evo-devo?
Evo-devo is a subspeciality in evolutionary biology that concentrates on studying the effects of changes in important developmental genes and the role they play in evolution.
5. Make a connection between human migration and the mutation of lactose intolerance.
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