The common ancestry of land and marine mammals – based on hemoglobin beta protein
sequence
Keshawn Burke
September 28, 2011
AP Biology, 12th Grade
North Star Academy Preparatory High School
“EDUCATION IS FREEDOM”
Introduction
Hemoglobin is a red protein that is responsible for transporting oxygen in the blood of
vertebrates. Humans, whales, otters, and other land and aquatic animals share the same common
ancestry because they all have the same hemoglobin beta protein which carries out the same
function in all vertebrates. But the protein has evolved different kinds of adaptations that allow
the animals to live in their different environment s. How close are the gene sequences of the
hemoglobin beat protein, in the different animals? Due to the proximity of the gene sequence
will the animals share a common ancestor, or will they diverge?
Due to the similarities in the genetic sequencing of the protein, one is able to use a phylogenic
tree (a evolutionary tree that is a branching diagram showing inferred evolutionary relationships
among various biological species) to help determine where the common ancestry lies.
Hemoglobin is a perfect protein to use because it performs the same function in all vertebrates.
Because the hemoglobin beta protein has the same function in both land and aquatic vertebrates,
then the land and aquatic vertebrates will share the same common ancestor.
Darwin believed in the idea that all life originated from a common ancestor. With this
hemoglobin beta protein, the concept will be supported by the evidence shown, in and during the
experiment. Aquatic animals derived from land animals that had migrated back into the water, in
order to protect themselves from predators on land; due to this new environmental change,
aquatic animals derived from land animals.
Materials
The experiment needs:
-
A computer
-
Internet access
-
The ability to save work on the laptop or desktop
-
Marine animals
-
Land animals
-
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/genbank/
-
www.ebi.ac.uk/Tools/msa/clustalw2/
Procedures
The method in which the lab was carried out is the same as the procedure, due to the fact
that the lab was predefined.
1. The sequence for the hemoglobin sequence for each animal had to be extracted from
the web site www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/genebank/ . (page 3)
2. Go to the website look at the search bar, click on it, and change the main focus into
proteins. The hemoglobin protein is known as HBB. In order to find the protein
type in HBB and then the name of the animal that is being used. (page 3)
3. A lot of information will appear on the screen once search is hit. Look on the screen
for “FASTA” and click it. By doing this it will allow for the amino acid sequence to
show up. (page 3-4)
4. Copy the amino acid sequence. (page 4)
5. Open up note pad, and past the amino acid sequence there. (page 5)
6. Rename the amino acid by deleting everything before the after the > sign, up to the
words “subunit beta” and label it the name of the animal. (page 5)
7. Repeat steps 1-6 for the rest of your animal species. The save the document.
8. Next go to the website http://www.ebi.ac.uk/Tools/msa/clustalw2/ this program will
align all of the sequences. (page 6)
9. Go on the website and then click on download file and add your file. Then scroll
down and click submit. (page 6)
10. Your aligned sequences will then appear on the screen, then click the button that
says show colors, and then click download file, and save the download. (page 7)
11. Then look at the side of the screen on the left, and click the tab “Phylogeny”, and
then click the launch button the next screen. (page 8)
12. Go the step one box and then click browse and put your downloaded file into the
box and click submit. (page 8)
13. Then one should have the phylogenetic tree at the bottom of the web page.
Results
-
The “space“ indicates a difference in the amino acids
-
The * is the similarities in the amino acids
The “-“ shows how many animal have the different genes
The data shows the amino acid sequence of the harbor seal, the sea otter, the dog,
the rat, the dolphin, the minke whale, the cow, the African elephant, the red
kangaroo, and the human. In which the sequence is aligned to help display the
differences in the amino acids sequence of each animal.
Amino Acid Sequence
Harbor
59
otter
59
walrus
59
dog
59
rat
59
dolphin
59
Minke
59
Cow
58
african
59
red
59
humans
60
-VHLTGEEKSAVTALWGKVNVDEVGGEALGRLLVVYPWTQRFFDSFGDLSSADAIMGNPK
-VHLTGEEKAAVTALWGKVNVDEVGGEALGRLLVVYPWTQRFFDSFGDLSSPDAVMGNPK
-VHLTADEKAAVTALWGKVNVDEVGGEALGRLLVVYPWTQRFFDSFGDLSSPDAVMGNPK
-VHLTAEEKSLVSGLWGKVNVDEVGGEALGRLLIVYPWTQRFFDSFGDLSTPDAVMSNAK
-VHLTDAEKAAVSGLWSKVNVDEIGGEALGRLLVVYPWTQRFFDSFGDLSSPSAVMSNPK
-VHLTGEEKSAVTALWGKVNVEEVGGEALGRLLVVYPWTQRFFESFGDLSTADAVMKNPN
-VHLTAEEKSAVTALWAKVNVEEVGGEALGRLLVVYPWTQRFFEAFGDLSTADAVMKNPK
--MLTAEEKAAVTAFWGKVKVDEVGGEALGRLLVVYPWTQRFFESFGDLSTADAVMNNPK
-VNLTAAEKTQVTNLWGKVNVKELGGEALSRLLVVYPWTRRFFEHFGDLSTAEAVLHNAK
-VHLTAEEKNAITSLWGKVAIEQTGGEALGRLLIVYPWTSRFFDHFGDLSNAKAVMGNPK
MVEWTDQERTIISNIFSTLDYEDVGSKSLIRCLIVYPWTQRYFAGFGNLYNAEAIKNNPN
*
Harbor
119
otter
119
walrus
119
dog
119
*:
:: ::..:
.: *.::* * *:***** *:*
**:* ...*:
*.:
VKAHGKKVLNSFSDGLKNLDNLKGTFAKLSELHCDKLHVDPENFKLLGNVLVCVLAHHFG
VKAHGKKVLNSFSEGLKNLDNLKGTFAKLSELHCDKLHVDPENFKLLGNVLVCVLAHHFG
VKAHGKKVLNSFSDGLKNLDNLKGTFAKLSELHCDKLHVDPENFKLLGNVLVCVLAHHFG
VKAHGKKVLNSFSDGLKNLDNLKGTFAKLSELHCDKLHVDPENFKLLGNVLVCVLAHHFG
rat
119
dolphin
119
Minke
119
Cow
118
african
119
red
119
humans
120
VKAHGKKVLNSFSEGLKHLDNLKGTFSSLSELHCDKLHVDPENFKLLGNVIVVVLAHHLG
VKKHGQKVLASFGEGLKHLDDLKGTFAALSELHCDKLHVDPENFRLLGNVLVVVLARHFG
VKAHGKKVLASFSDGLKHLDDLKGTFATLSELHCDKLHVDPENFRLLGNVLVIVLARHFG
VKAHGKKVLDSFSNGMKHLDDLKGTFAALSELHCDKLHVDPENFKLLGNVLVVVLARNFG
VLAHGEKVLTSFGEGLKHLDNLKGTFADLSELHCDKLHVDPENFRLLGNVLVIVLARHFG
VLAHGAKVLVAFGDAIKNLDNLKGTFAKLSELHCDKLHVDPENFKLLGNIIVICLAEHFG
IAKHGVTVLHGLDRAVKNMDNIKETYKELSELHSEKLHVDPDNFKLLSDCLTIVVATKMG
:
Harbor
otter
walrus
dog
rat
dolphin
Minke
Cow
african
red
humans
** .** .:. .:*::*::* *:
KEFTPQVQAAYQKVVAGVANALAHKYH
KEFTPQVQAAYQKVVAGVANALAHKYH
KEFTPQVQAAYQKVVAGVANALAHKYH
KEFTPQVQAAYQKVVAGVANALAHKYH
KDFTPAAQAAFQKVVAGVATALAHKYH
KEFTPELQSAYQKVVAGVATALAHKYH
KEFTPELQAAYQKVVAGVANALAHKYH
KEFTPVLQADFQKVVAGVANALAHRYH
KEFTPDVQAAYEKVVAGVANALAHKYH
KEFTIDTQVAWQKLVAGVANALAHKYH
SKFTPEIQATFQKFLAVVVSALGRQYH
..**
* ::*.:* *..**.::**
*****.:******:**:**.: :.
:* ::*
146
146
146
146
146
146
146
145
146
146
147
Image 1, alignment of amino acids
-
The information shows the phylogenic tree, and the relationships between each
animal, dependent upon the amino acid sequence of the hemoglobin protein. (image
2)
Image 2, phylogenetic tree
Discussion
The following results show how marine mammals and land mammals have all
derived from different common ancestors. If one is to look at the relationship
between the marsupial, the red kangaroo, and the human, it shows a clear
distinction that they are closely related. This is compelling because the human is
classified as a mammal due to the fact that it is a placental mammal, meaning that
its off spring develops inside the placenta of the female sex. Whereas the red
kangaroo is a marsupial, which means that the developing embryo is conceived in a
pouch. And when one looks closer to at the phylogentic tree it shows that the
marsupial the red kangaroo derived from the African elephant meaning that
marsupials, homo sapiens, and Loxodonta africana all have a common ancestry.
The tree also shows how the cow, the minke whale, and the dolphin also share a
common ancestor. This has to be the most compelling evidence on the tree because
the cow, Bos Taurus, is a land animal, it is also important to note that the cow is a
grazing animal, and they are not predators. But if one was to look at the dolphin
and the minke whale, they both are predatory animals. The minke whale is a kind of
baleen whale, which eats plankton and krill, and small amounts of fish, whereas the
dolphins’ diet contains fish. How is it that these two animals derived from the same
ancestor? Was the animal that the dolphin, minke whale, and cow derived from,
some kind of herbivore that later proved to be maladaptive to its environment, and
some of the species went to eat fish and developed fins so it could be better suited to
catch its food source, thus creating the minke whale and the dolphin? The results
proved allows one to see the isolation of one protein that is commonly shared
between a variety of animals can lead to a show in similarities in a common
ancestor; thus allowing scientist to draw the origin of life back to one common
ancestor that all animals share.
Conclusion
The evidence provided shows how the relationship of animals can be seen by using a
phylogentic tree. Using this method will allow one to see how a common ancestry is
derived between many groups of animals. The tree also speaks on a evolutionary
level as well, because it allows one to hypothesize how and why animals evolve. And
shine some kind of light on how or why these animals share this common ancestry.