1. DNA experiences mutations on a regular basis; however, only some of those mut
ID: 192635 • Letter: 1
Question
1. DNA experiences mutations on a regular basis; however, only some of those mutations will be subject to the action of selection and only some of them can experience evolutionary change, becoming more or less common in the population as a result of that selection. Clearly describe the characteristics of a mutation in a protein-coding gene that will allow it to be acted upon by selection and evolve as a result. Explain why each of these characteristics is required for evolution as a result of selection.Explanation / Answer
Mutations constantly occur in an organism's hereditary material, such that they can be passed on fromm one generation to another, and build up the potential raw material for evolution to occur. The mutations accumulates in the organism's genome and either leads to positive, negative or no effect at all. Therefore mutations can be single point mutations that are either synonymous (silent mutations) or non-synonymous (missense or non-sense), chromosomal rearrangements, shift in the reading frame by addition or deletion of bases, gene duplication, mutations that affect the gene product (change in alternative splicing or mutations in the promoter region of the gene or in the transcriptional activator repressor binding sites).
Mutations that affect gene expression or gene function of a protein coding gene are of primary importance, as they are prone to selection during evolution. Such cases have been discussed below.
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