Education
Foundation
Biology 6B Engage
Unit 4, Outcome 2 (Part 2
Evidence for evolutionary ct
nge and evolutionary relationships
Factors contribu
Microevolution: changes in the proportions of phenotypes and alleles in the population,
= Genetic drit- changes in the allele frequencies due to random events.
- Founder effect- colonisation of an area by individuals that are not representative of the original population
that previously occupied the area.
- Bottleneck effect- severe reduction in genetic diversity due to a catastrophe that results in changed allele
frequencies.
= Gene flowe the movement of alleles into (immigration) or out (emigration) of a population.
- Natural selection- the mechanism whereby phenotypes that are better suited to a particular environment
are more capable of surviving. It has 4 components: variation, selecting agent, selecting advantage and
inheritance.
- _ Attiticial selection- the mechanism whereby organisms with favourable traits are selectively bred in
preference to those that do not have these traits.
Evidence of biological evolution over time
~ Geological time scale- fossil evidence that is collected over time to produce atime scale.
~ Relative dating- used to make approximate, comparative time estimates through examination of strata
~ Absolute dating- gives specific time frames of archaeological samples, Raciomettic dating and electron
spin resonance are examples.
~ Fossil recorc- documents evolution through imprints of organisms preserved in sedimentary rocks
~ Biogeography: the separation of Earth’s continents providing evidence of the distribution of diferent
organisms.
~ Comparative morphology: homologous (common ancestor), analogous (diferent ancestor), vestigal
structures and comparative embryology.
~ Molecular homology- evidence of shared ancestry found in similarties between DNA and proteins.
Determination of evolutionary relationships
‘Comparison of DNA/ amino acid sequences & chromosomal analysis
‘The more differences in bases/amino acids found in different sequences the more distantly related the species are.
Comparisons of banding pattems and chromosomal arrangements are determined by probing, The more
similarities, the more closely related the species.
Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA)
miONA is maternally inherited, with many copies found in an individual. There is no crossing over and
recombination unlike nuclear DNA. It has a high mutation rate especially in the D loop region, useful for tracing
divergence over short periods. Its useful for tracing waves of migration and providing information of early origins.
DNA- DNA hybridisation
When DNA of two species have been dissociated into single strands and allowed to mix together, complementary
‘segments anneal. The stronger the association between the strands, the greater the relatedness. This is quantified
by a melting temperature, whereby high melting temperatures correspond to strong associations,
wikiee.org.au PagetPhylogeny
Phylogenetic trees examine evolutionary relationships through lines of descents. Each branch point represents the
most recent common ancestor of the descendants and branch length gives a time estimation of divergence,
Patterns of biological cl
Divergent evolution
‘Attype of evolution involving the establishment of many species from a common ancestor due of factors such as
natural selection and genetic dit
Adaptive radiation
‘A special type of divergent speciation that involves rapid divergence of an evolutionary ineage from a recent
‘common ancestor. This results from adaptation to different habitats and islands in the absence of competition, so
many new species end up occupying new niches.
Convergent evolution
‘Attype of evolution that occurs when organisms that do not share a recent common ancestor are exposed to
similar environments and selective pressures so they end up developing similar phenotypes.
Allopatric speciation
‘This occurs when members of a population are split into separate groups, in response to geographical isolation.
Extinction
‘This occurs when a species ceases to exist in response to environmental changes that occur too rapidly to allow
the species to adapt. Humans may have a role in the extinction through their roles in the destruction of habitats,
introduction of feral species, exploitation and poaching of species and their role in Global Warming,
Human evolution- A look
adaptations as part of evolutionary changes in humans
Bipedalism in modem humans has been made possible through adaptations such as the curvature of the spine,
bowl shaped pelvis, longer legs and shorter arms, the foreman magnum positioned in the centre of the skull and
the alignment of the big toe with other toes.
‘Skull adaptations include the parabolic arrangement of the teeth, the reduction of size in frontal denture, loss of
bony ridges around the eyes, larger brain cases and flatter faces.
8 main types of human evolution include biological evolution (resulting from natural selection), cultural evolution
{socially transmitted changes in society) and technological evolution (changes in technology as a result of increased
human control over their environment)
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