MICROEVOLUTION
- INTRODUCTION
- Evolution
- Generation to generation in allelic or genotypic frequency
- Change in a population genetic structure
- Only one loci needs to be changing for population evolution
- No such thing as individual evolution
GENETIC DRIFT
- Too small a population size
Sampling error
- 1000 coin tosses (500:500)
- 5 coin tosses (2:3 = 400:600)
Common in population under 100 individuals
Example
Parent generation
- AA - Aa - aa
- A = 50%; a = 50%
- Perhaps the homozygous dominant individuals do not mate, therefore, the heterozygote and homozygous recessive only leave offspring
F1 generation
- Aa - Aa - aa - aa
- A = 25%; a = 75%
Bottle neck effect
Unselective killing
- Earthquakes, fires, flooding, hunting
North American elephant seal
- Hunted to 20
- Numbers up to 30,000 since protected
- Genes fixed at 20 loci examined
South American elephant seal
- Not hunted
- Multiple alleles at all loci examined
Founder's effect
A few individuals colonize a new habitat
- Ponds, islands, etc.
- Even just one, if pregnant or with seed
Tristanda Cuhna (a British colony)
- Founded in 1814 by 15 persons
- One carrier of the recessive allele for retinistis pigmentosis
- Population at 240 in 1960
- 4 showed trait and 9 were carriers
GENE FLOW
- Perhaps pollen from white flower pollinates a population of red flowers
Might result in some pink flowers
Preference of pollinators for flower color will effect the fate of the white allele
MUTATIONS
- Original source of allelic variation
- Types
Neutral
- Fingerprints
Advantageous
- House fly and DDT
- Antibiotic resistance in bacteria
- Sickle cell anemia
Disadvantageous
- Phenylketonuria
Not much by itself without selection
NON-RANDOM MATING
- Types
Interbreeding / self fertilization
Assortive mating
- select partners like themselves
Effect
Increases the number of homozygotes and decreases number of heterozygotes
- With random mating you might expect 1:2:1 ratio of genotypes, but with non-random mating you might get a 5:2:5 ratio
- AA x AA = AA + AA; aa x aa = aa + aa; Aa x Aa = AA + Aa + Aa + aa
Allelic frequency does not change, but genotypic frequency is altered
- Recessive phenotype is increased
- Often defective, hence taboos against close marriages