WHAT IS EVOLUTION? Evolving --> changing Changes accumulated over time Did the giraffes neck evolve to be long, so that the giraffe could reach the high branches? Did you evolve from a chimp? Why aren’t humans still evolving from chimps? WHAT IS EVOLUTION? DEFINITION EVOLUTION IS A PROCESS THAT RESULTS IN CHANGES IN THE GENETIC MATERIAL OF A POPULATION OVER TIME EVOLUTION REFLECTS THE ADAPTATIONS OF ORGANISMS TO THEIR CHANGING ENVIRONMENTS AND CAN RESULT IN ALTERED GENES, NOVEL TRAITS AND NEW SPECIES WHAT IS EVOLUTION? WHAT IS EVOLUTION? MUTATIONS MECHANISMS OF EVOLUTION NATURAL SELECTION GENETIC DRIFT = Mechanisms that lead to changes in a population POPULATION = group of interacting organisms (same species, same time, same place) These mechanisms change the allele frequency from one generation to another ALLELE = different variations of the same gene GENE FLOW MUTATIONS CREATE VARIATIONS MUTATION = changes in DNA, that is inherited If the change isn’t passed down to an offspring, it is not a mutation, so it has to happen in an egg cell or a sperm cell (reproductive cells) When variations are created, natural selection has something to select from! Mutations create new phenotypes, and they can be more equipped to survive in the given environment Who’s DNA mutates faster? population of bacteria or population of elephants What does it mean to be lactose – intolerant? 2023 MECHANISMS OF EVOLUTION 7 TYPES OF MUTATIONS MUTATION ARE THE ONLY MECHANISMS THAT CAN CREATE VARIATIONS - NEW ALLELES MUTATION CAN AFFECT LARGER PART OF THE GENOME (WHOLE CHROMOSOMES) OR ONLY ONE NUCTEOTIDE POINT MUTATIONS - WHEN ONLY ONE NUCLEOTIDE BASE IS CHANGED (PICTURE -->) for example - sickle cell anemia MUTATIONS ARE NOT ALWAYS BAD! The changes can be benefitial or bad depending on the environmant One mutation can at the same time be good for one habitat, but bad for a different one Some mutation can be SILENT - meaning they do not cause a chanhe in the amino acid sequence of the protein 2023 MECHANISMS OF EVOLUTION 8 GENETIC DRIFT CAUSES CHANGES BY CHANCE ALONE Changes in the allele frequency occur totaly random Bottleneck effect – allele frequency changes because portion of alleles is lost randomly (it doesn’t reflect how well adapted the organisms were) Bottleneck effect Genetic drift occurs when the alleles that make it into the next generationin the population are a random sample of alleles currently present in the population They do not have to be an accurate representation of the current allele frequency Founder effect - when a small group of individual seperate from the original population and they start a new colony, this new population will have a radnom selection of alleles and will probably be less diverse 2023 MECHANISMS OF EVOLUTION 9 NATURAL SELECTION WHO GETS EATEN, WHO GETS TO REPRODUCE? Natural selection is the pressure that environment exerts on a population The stronger the pressure, the fewer individuals survive VARIATIONS = differences There has to be variation for natural selection to have something to chose from 2023 MECHANISMS OF EVOLUTION 10 NATURAL SELECTION STABILIZES, DIRECTS OR DISRUPTS? STABILISING – average phenotype survives most DIRECTIONAL – one of the extremes survives DISRUPTIVE – average phenotype is eliminated, but both extremes are well adapted to the environment 2023 MECHANISMS OF EVOLUTION 11 GENE FLOW THERE WERE NONE, NOW CAME ONE Gene flow happens when organisms or their reproductive cells (pollen) migrate into a different population and reproduce there This makes the population more diverse – new genes But, The two populations are now more alike – same genes 2023 MECHANISMS OF EVOLUTION 12 SPECIATION CREATION OF A NEW SPECIES Where does a new species come from? What is a species? SPECIATION Single species branch into two or more new species They become so different, that they can’t reproduce REPRODUCTIVE ISOLATION Why does it happen? ALLOPATRIC – physical barrier (geographic separation) between populations SYMPATRIC – they stay in the same location, but some changes in their genetic material (DNA) make it impossible for them to reproduce and make fertile offspring 2023 MECHANISMS OF EVOLUTION 14 YOUTUBE WHAT IS EVOLUTION? - https://youtu.be/GhHOjC4oxh8 ALLELES & GENES https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pv3Kj0UjiLE GENETIC DRIFT https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W0TM4LQmoZY NATURAL SELECTION & ANTIBIOTICS (MUST WATCH) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7VM9YxmULuo THANK YOU! KATARINA RADAKOVIĆ katarina98.radakovic@gmail.com 2023 EVOLUTION MECHANISMS 16