In biological evolution, organisms that develop genetic traits that allow them to better adapt to their physical environment are more likely to thrive, and thus pass down their winning genes to their offspring.
The process of natural selection results in genetic differences that give some organisms an edge over others.
An important aspect of our understanding of how genes interact in the evolutionary process has been added to by new research.
The study was published in the journal Science. The first-of-its-kind study shows that different combinations of genetic mutations can have an impact on the evolutionary process, a finding that could benefit areas such as personalized medicine and vaccine design.
Understanding how much we can predict about adaptation has been of interest to many people in the field.
A mountain can be compared to adaptation. The paths taken to the peaks are thought to be the result of successive changes in the terrain. How can scientists predict the route to the mountain top?
There are huge implications if we can figure out what will happen in the future for living organisms.
The team of researchers at the annB lab at the University of Texas Medical Branch explore genetic changes in cells and their impact on evolution using next-generation technologies. High-throughput synthetic biology, changing existing ones for research purposes, and a desk-sized robot that can process numerous biological samples are included.
He started the study five years ago when he was at Harvard University. Christopher Bakerlee is the study's co-principal investigator.
The genes in the cells of yeast can be altered with the help of the technology, which is used in genetic engineering research because it shares some genes with humans.
They worked with 10 missense mutations, which change the production of amino acids. The building blocks of life are the amino acids, which combine to form the proteins that conduct everything from healing wounds to providing energy to making antibodies.
The process involved testing out all of the possible combinations. The scientists wanted to know how genes interact with each other.
The final year of the study was when he analyzed and interpreted the data. The study showed that evolution often samples combinations of genes. This acts on the yeast's evolutionary potential by slowing their rate of adaptation.
The findings run counter to the idea that all adaptation happens in a predictable way. The future evolutionary potential of an organisms depends on the combinations of the different genes that have accumulated through time.
He says that it challenges the view that we should study one genes at a time. Examining the same genes could lead to more precise medicine.
It is shown that in order for us to have a full understanding of how genes behave.
More information: Christopher W. Bakerlee et al, Idiosyncratic epistasis leads to global fitness–correlated trends, Science (2022). DOI: 10.1126/science.abm4774 Journal information: Science Citation: New insights on link between genetic mutations and biological evolution (2022, May 17) retrieved 17 May 2022 from https://phys.org/news/2022-05-insights-link-genetic-mutations-biological.html This document is subject to copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study or research, no part may be reproduced without the written permission. The content is provided for information purposes only.
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