5.4.1

Evolutionary Relationships

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Evolutionary Relationships

Advances in technology have led to the development of new techniques to help establish evolutionary relationships between species. These techniques include:

Illustrative background for Genome sequencingIllustrative background for Genome sequencing ?? "content

Genome sequencing

  • The base sequences of organisms can be sequenced and compared to other organisms.
  • The more similar the base sequences are between organisms, the more closely related the two organisms are.
  • Genome sequencing has helped clarify evolutionary relationships (e.g. the relationship between skunks and weasels).
Illustrative background for Amino acid sequencingIllustrative background for Amino acid sequencing ?? "content

Amino acid sequencing

  • The amino acids that make-up proteins in an organism can be sequenced and compared to other organisms.
  • The more similar the amino acid sequences are between organisms, the more closely related they are.
    • E.g. Cytochrome C is an electron carrier protein used in respiration (it is in many organisms). Comparing the amino acid sequence of cytochrome C between organisms clarifies evolutionary relationships.
Illustrative background for Antibody-antigen interactionsIllustrative background for Antibody-antigen interactions ?? "content

Antibody-antigen interactions

  • Species produce specific antibodies that recognise foreign proteins.
  • An organism's antibodies can be isolated and mixed with another organism's proteins to see how many antigen-antibody complexes are formed.
  • The more complexes that form, the more closely related the two organisms are.

Jump to other topics

1Cell Biology

2Molecular Biology

3Genetics

4Ecology

5Evolution & Biodiversity

6Human Physiology

7AHL: Nucleic Acids

8AHL: Metabolism, Cell Respiration & Photosynthesis

9AHL: Plant Biology

9.1Transport in the Xylem of Plants

9.2Transport in the Phloem of Plants

9.3Growth in Plants

10AHL: Genetics & Evolution

11AHL: Animal Physiology

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