LIFE 102 Lecture Notes - Allele Frequency, Genetic Drift, Sexual Selection
Document Summary
Concept 23. 1: mutation and sexual reproduction produce the genetic variation that makes evolution possible. Two processes, mutation and sexual reproduction, produce the variation in gene pools that contributes to differences among individuals. Mutations are changes in the nucleotide sequence of dna. Mutations cause new genetics and alleles to arise. Only mutations in cells that produce gametes can be passed to offspring. A point mutation is a change in one base in a gene. Mutations in noncoding regions of dna are often harmless. Mutations in a gene might not affect protein production because of redundancy in the genetic code. Mutations that result in a change in protein production are often harmful. Mutations that result in a change in protein production can sometimes increase the fit between organism and environment. Chromosomal mutations that delete, disrupt, or rearrange many loci are typically harmful. Duplication of large chromosome segments is usually harmful.
