Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
An image of multiple chromosomes, taken from many cells. Plant genetics is the study of genes, genetic variation, and heredity specifically in plants. [1] [2] It is generally considered a field of biology and botany, but intersects frequently with many other life sciences and is strongly linked with the study of information systems.
Genetic fragments such as pseudogenes, regions of DNA that are orthologous to a gene in a related organism, but are no longer active and appear to be undergoing a steady process of degeneration from cumulative mutations support common descent alongside the universal biochemical organization and molecular variance patterns found in all organisms ...
The genetic code (the "translation table" according to which DNA information is translated into amino acids, and hence proteins) is nearly identical for all known lifeforms, from bacteria and archaea to animals and plants. The universality of this code is generally regarded by biologists as definitive evidence in favor of universal common descent.
The observation that living things inherit traits from their parents has been used since prehistoric times to improve crop plants and animals through selective breeding. [7] [8] The modern science of genetics, seeking to understand this process, began with the work of the Augustinian friar Gregor Mendel in the mid-19th century.
Inherited traits are controlled by genes and the complete set of genes within an organism's genome is called its genotype. [2] The complete set of observable traits of the structure and behavior of an organism is called its phenotype. These traits arise from the interaction of the organism's genotype with the environment. [3]
The insecticide kills insects that eat the plants but is harmless to people. [20] In these plants, the new genes are put into the plant before it is grown, so the genes are in every part of the plant, including its seeds. [21] The plant's offspring inherit the new genes, which has led to concern about the spread of new traits into wild plants. [22]
Artificial selection is the controlled breeding of domestic plants and animals. Humans determine which animal or plant will reproduce and which of the offspring will survive; thus, they determine which genes will be passed on to future generations. The process of artificial selection has had a significant impact on the evolution of domestic ...
Domestication has been defined as "a sustained multi-generational, mutualistic relationship in which one organism assumes a significant degree of influence over the reproduction and care of another organism in order to secure a more predictable supply of a resource of interest, and through which the partner organism gains advantage over individuals that remain outside this relationship ...