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Forces that Drive Evolution
Mutation, Natural Selection,Genetic Drift and Gene Flow
Forces that Drive EvolutionObjectives:
• Understand that evolution is change over time• Understand that there are four main forces
that “drive” evolution:– Mutation– Natural selection– Genetic drift– Gene flow
• Be able to explain each, and how they work
Evolution – A Definition (or three)
• Variation of inherited traits within a population over time as a consequence of mutation, genetic recombination, or gene flow
• Descent with modification• Change over time
Charles Darwin – The Theory of Evolution
• English naturalist (1809-1882)• Traveled the world (including the
Galapagos Islands) on the Beagle, making observations, collecting samples, formulating the Theory of Evolution
• Published On The Origin of Species over 20 years after his voyage on the Beagle.
• It was meant to explain the diversity of life, not the origin.
Why is Darwin so important?
• Provided evidence for descent with modification (i.e., change over time, i.e., evolution)
• Proposed a natural mechanism for how species evolve (i.e., natural selection)
Evolution helps explain…
• The diversity of life on Earth• How new species are formed• Why organisms look and behave
the way they do• How organisms respond to
changes in their environment• Why some groups of organisms
are more diverse than others
Darwin’s Evidence for Evolution
• Animal distributions - Closely related organisms found in geographical proximity
Darwin’s Evidence for Evolution
• Fossils - Sequential emergence of different groups and transitional forms
• Homology - The spatial and developmental equivalence of traits that may look quite different
Darwin’s Evidence for Evolution
• Vestigial features - Speaks to imperfect “design”. Best explained by the persistence of shared traits.
Darwin’s Evidence for Evolution
Yeah, but what actually causes
evolution, anyway?!?
• Mutation – Random changes in DNA sequence
• Natural selection• Genetic Drift – Change in
gene pool due to chance• Gene Flow – Change in
allele frequency due to migration
Forces That Drive Evolution
U.S. Department of Energy Human Genome Program, http://www.ornl.gov/hgmis
Mutations Affect Genes, Proteins, Traits
Natural Selection
From “Understanding Evolution”
What is “Natural Selection”?
Individuals in a population that are better adapted (variation) to survive in an environment (competition) pass on their traits to more offspring in the next generation (differential reproductive success, heritability)
H.E. Hoekstra
Natural Selection: Pocket Mouse Video
H.E. Hoekstra
Natural Selection Activities• Survival of the Skittles http
://salsa.nescent.org/activity-2-survival-of-the-skittles/)
• “Clip Birds” (http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/education/lessons/clipbirds/)
• Teddy Graham Evolution• Several online simulations… – EvoDots (http://faculty.washington.edu/herronjc/SoftwareFolder/EvoDots.html)
– AIPOTU (http://aipotu.umb.edu/)
– PhET NS Simulator (http://phet.colorado.edu/en/simulation/natural-selection)
– McGraw-Hill Natural Selection Simulator http://www.mhhe.com/biosci/genbio/virtual_labs/BL_12/BL_12.html
• ENSI Evolution Lessons (http://www.indiana.edu/~ensiweb/evol.fs.html)
Genetic Drift – Change in gene pool due to chance
Genetic Drift
From “Understanding Evolution”
Genetic Drift – Change in gene pool due to chance
Genetic Drift
The “jar of marbles” example
From “Understanding Evolution”
Genetic Drift – Change in gene pool due to chance
Genetic Drift
The “jar of marbles” example
From “Understanding Evolution”
A population’s size is reduced for at least one generation
Genetic Drift - Bottlenecks
From “Understanding Evolution”
Genetic Drift – Founder Effect
Establishment of a new population (colony) by just a few individuals
Question:Why are genetic drift, bottlenecks and
founder effects important in evolution?
Answer:They result in reduced genetic
variation.
And why does this matter???
Because reduced genetic variation can mean decreased ability to adapt to new selective pressures, such as…
Climate change Evolving pathogens
or…
Change in allele frequency due to migration
Gene Flow
From “Understanding Evolution”
Questions?