Evolution & the

Origin of Life
OBJECTIVES:

.
1 Define Evolution.
2. Explain the mechanism of
evolution.
3. Identify evidence of evolution;
and
4. Infer evolutionary relationship
among organism using the
evidence of evolution.
What is Evolution?
Evolution is the change in the characteristics of a
species over several generations and relies on the
process of natural selection.

Evolutionary Biology
The branch of biology that deals with the study
of how life started on Earth and how it gave rise
to the many species that now exist .
Characteristics of Life

1.Cellular Complexity
2.Growth and Development
3.Reproduction
4.Response to stimuli
5.Homeostasis
Geologic Time Scale of the Earth’s History
1.Formation of the earths crust and
ocean

 Around 4.6 to 3.8 bya debris from the

forming solar system crashed into the early
earth keeping its surface burning hot.
 Temperature of the ocean fell to 49°C to
88°C.
 Atmosphere: 20% oxygen (mostly water
vapor),
10% CO2 , 5 to 7% Hydrogen sulfide and small
amount of nitrogen, CO, H, methane, and inert
gases.
 Swiftly vanished during the Hadean period
due to weak gravitational force around
the atmosphere.
Geologic Time Scale of the Earth’s History
2. Oldest geologic evidence of life

 3.5 bya
 It appears that life on earth have
existed during boisterous first billion
years.
 Stromatolites is a sedimentary rock
formation, a strong evidence that the
sheet of microbes captured during
sedimentary particles.
 Successive layers of these sediments
resulted the striated pattern of
settlements that enable geologist to
trace back their geologic age.
Geologic Time Scale of the Earth’s History
3. Propagation of cyanobacteria
 Ancestors of the blue green algae may
have thrived as early as 3 bya.
 Photosynthesis allowed this organism to
convert light energy to chemical energy.
 As a result oxygen molecules eventually
increased, which transformed the earths
atmosphere and paved the way the
beginning of biodiversity on our planet.
Geologic Time Scale of the Earth’s History
4. Appearance of the first Eukaryotes
 Geologic evidence that life was only composed of
prokaryotes until 2 bya.
 Modern eukaryotes are characterizes as having a
membrane bound organelles like mitochondria and
nucleus.
 Several scientist suspect that this cellular organelles and
molecules may have evolved from ancient relationships
between different bacteria (endosymbiosis theory)
Geologic Time Scale of the Earth’s History
5. Influx of Multicellular Organisms
 1.2 bya
 Multicellularity occurred several times
 According to some hypotheses,
multicellularity was a product of symbiotic
relationship between cells of similar or
different species that led to
interdependency among organism
Geologic Time Scale of the Earth’s History
6. The Cambrian Explosion
 Fossil records showed evidence that there was a
drastic increase in the diversity of complex
faunal species during a relative short time span
 So called Cambrian explosion took place that
cause major animal phyla to appear.
Geologic Time Scale of the Earth’s History
7. Arrival of Modern Human
 Paleontological evidence suggests that modern human
might have evolved from homo erectus approximately 250
thousand years ago.
Theories about the origin of life
1.Panspermia
2.Abiogenesis
 Spontaneous generation
 Primordial soup Theory
 Clay Hypothesis
 Deep Hot Biosphere
Hypothesis
1.Panspermia
 Microscopic life forms that
survived the effects of
space become trapped in
debris that were expelled
into the space after collision
between the planets were
responsible in harboring life
forms.
 Like for instance meteors or
cosmic dust that hit the
earth transported organic
molecules which started the
evolution of life.
 After big bang, the
biochemistry of life began
ago during a habitable
epoch.
2. Abiogenesis
Life evolve from inanimate objects. Naturalist
proponents believe that this theory have 4 key events:
1. An atmosphere full of reduced gas molecules and a source
of energy needed to convert this molecules into important
biological precursors required for life.
2. An ocean teeming with biological molecules
3. Aprocess to produce from this ocean of molecules the
kinds of information rich polymers essential for living cell
4. Abelief that step 3 can be executed , it will result almost
inevitably to the creation of living cell.
A. Spontaneous Generation

The obsolete idea of spontaneous generation is

described as the formation of living organism
without arising from similar organism.
Likethe idea that a certain organisms like fleas, for
example could come from a non-living matter or that
maggots could arise from dead meat. This belief was
popular during the 17th to 18th century.
FranciscoRedi an Italian poet and a naturalist
demonstrated a simple experiment to disprove such
popular belief.
Francisco Redi Experiment
Louis Pasteur Experiment S-shape
flask
B. Primordial Soup Theory
 According to Alexander Oparin this theory hypothesize that possible
conditions on the primitive earth allows the onset of chemical reactions
that lead to the formation of other complex organic molecules using
simple inorganic substance.
 Oparin initially argued that the concept of “spontaneous generation” had
happened due to “primeval soup” of different organic molecules that
could have created a non oxygen atmosphere due to the action of light.
 This was summarized by Robert Saphiro by giving a 4 conditions:
1. Earth had a chemically reducing atmosphere (small amount of oxygen
due to UV).
2. The atmosphere exposed to energy in various forms produced simple
organic compounds.
3. These compound are accumulated in a “soup” which may have been
concentrated at various locations
4. By further transformation, more complex organic polymers and
ultimately life develop in a soup.
C. Clay Hypothesis
Proposed by Graham Cairns Smith this hypothesis
suggest that the first molecules of life might have met on
clay, whose surfaces not only concentrated these
compound together, but also helped them organize them
into patterns.
These intricate organic molecules ascended slowly from
pre- existing, non organic repetition platform of silicate
crystals in solution.
 D. Deep Hot Biosphere Hypothesis
 Postulates by Thomas Gold, states that life does not begin on the surface
of the earth but instead in the porosity of its crust.
 The discovery of tiny filamental structures that are similar to bacteria
called nanobes in deep rocks in the early 90’s supported such claims
 Lamarks Theory of adaptation
 One of the first proponents of the idea of evolution is the
French scientist Jean Baptiste de Lamarks (1744-1829).
 He suggested the concept of inheritance of acquired
characteristics.
 He states that if an animal could develop a particular
characteristics in its lifetime, then this trait could be passed
on to their offspring and its succeeding generation.
 For example the long neck of the giraffe
Charles Darwin the Natural Selection
Charles Darwin expedite around the world from 1831-1836 on HMS Beagle. Which
enable him to study the different speciments around the world.
Natural Selection is the process by which organisms with traits suited to an environment
or favorable traits have a better chance of surviving and reproducing than those that are
not suited.

Darwin’s explanation of natural selection is summarized as follows:

1. The traits of individuals of a species vary.
2. Organisms may produced a number of offspring that are more than the actual
number of offspring that can survive within limited sources but their population
remains constant under natural conditions.
3. Individual organism have the tendency to compete for available resources or
struggle for existence.
4. Some individuals possess favorable traits that help them to compete for
resources ;some have disadvantageous traits. Those with favorable traits are
more likely to survive.
5. Individuals with favorable traits have higher chances of passing on their traits
offspring and thus, their offspring are better suited to environment.
1859 he publishes his idea in his book entitled Origin of Species by means of
Alfred Russel Wallace: Father of Biogeography

Started an expedition through the Amazon and

Southeast Asian region.
He wanted to demonstrate that evolution took place
by showing how geography influenced the current
distribution of species.
He studied hundred of thousands of animals and
plants meticulously recording the exact localities
where he had observe them.
Rivers and mountain ranges serve as a demarcation of
many species distributional range.
Enumerate the 7 important events happen on Geologic time Scale of the Earth’s History.

What are the 4 models of Abiogenesis