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Several major ideas about evolution came together in the population genetics of the early 20th century to form the modern synthesis, including genetic variation, natural selection, and particulate inheritance. [1] This ended the eclipse of Darwinism and supplanted a variety of non-Darwinian theories of evolution.
V P = V E + V G, where the terms refer to variation in phenotype, environment, and genotype respectively. [1] Broad sense heritability (H 2, or H B) refers to the phenotypic differences arising from all genetic effects, and can be described as the ratio of genotypic variation to that of phenotypic variation in the population, or: H 2 = V G / V P.
The discovery of DNA as the blueprint for life and breakthroughs in molecular genetics research came from the combined works of many scientists. In 1869, chemist Johann Friedrich Miescher, who was researching the composition of white blood cells, discovered and isolated a new molecule that he named nuclein from the cell nucleus, which would ultimately be the first discovery of the molecule DNA ...
Lamarck argued, as part of his theory of heredity, that a blacksmith's sons inherit the strong muscles he acquires from his work. [1]Lamarckism, also known as Lamarckian inheritance or neo-Lamarckism, [2] is the notion that an organism can pass on to its offspring physical characteristics that the parent organism acquired through use or disuse during its lifetime.
Genetic variation is the difference in DNA among individuals [1] or the differences between populations among the same species. [2] The multiple sources of genetic variation include mutation and genetic recombination. [3] Mutations are the ultimate sources of genetic variation, but other mechanisms, such as genetic drift, contribute to it, as ...
Heredity, also called inheritance or biological inheritance, is the passing on of traits from parents to their offspring; either through asexual reproduction or sexual reproduction, the offspring cells or organisms acquire the genetic information of their parents.
Evolution is the change in the heritable characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. [1] [2] It occurs when evolutionary processes such as natural selection and genetic drift act on genetic variation, resulting in certain characteristics becoming more or less common within a population over successive generations. [3]
Molecular evolution describes how inherited DNA and/or RNA change over evolutionary time, and the consequences of this for proteins and other components of cells and organisms. Molecular evolution is the basis of phylogenetic approaches to describing the tree of life. Molecular evolution overlaps with population genetics, especially on shorter ...