Posted on 02/08/2002 5:40:18 AM PST by JediGirl
Scientists have discovered the first genetic evidence explaining how small mutations can cause big changes in an organism's body.
Until now there has been little proof that one genetic change can successfully lead to a whole new species.
A University of California study has shown how a mutation in a 'master gene' which controls others could lead to a major body change.
The study looked at a class of genes known as Hox, which switch on and off other genes during an organism's development as an embryo.
The San Diego team used brine shrimp to prove a simple mutation here suppressed 15% of the limb development in the animal's central body region.
This would have allowed its ancestors, which had limbs on every segment of its body to lose their hind legs and evolve into six-legged insects.
Professor William McGinnis, who led the study, claims it answers the question as to how evolution can introduce big changes into an animal's body shape and still generate a living animal.
He said: "Creationists have argued that any big jump would result in a dead animal that wouldn't be able to perpetuate itself.
"And until now, no one's been able to demonstrate how you could do that at the genetic level with specific instructions in the genome."
Story filed: 12:41 Friday 8th February 2002
You've bumped the crevolist.
Everybody duck.
There is a solution-- realatarians--rule!!
Congratulations on achieving the next level of evolution of awareness. The farcical level. We are looking forward to continued progress as you become able to ascend [or descend] to the next rung on the Ladder of Illumination.
How can this be? I thought genetic evolution was a "fact." How can this be the first if we have had proof all along? By the way, this is really another "Just So" story. Hey, it could happen, man, it really could. Just imagine . . .
ABSOLUTE NONSENSE!!
First off,
1.) who did the mutation, scientists or nature?
2.) If it caused the legs to fall off, where did the NEW DNA come from to create the 6 legs of insects?
3.) If there was a mutation of one creature that was mssing it's hind legs, how did it get around? It had a natural knowlege of how to use it's original number of legs, only now it has less, which means less mobility, and that means it was easier prey for shrimp eating creatures, how woudl it survive?
4.) What is the evidence this actually happened in time past? If this is a laboratory manufactured event, the mutation, how in the world does this prove the following:
Brilliant people, working with the latest technologies, performed numerous planned and controlled events to manufacture a genetic mutation in a shrimp inside laboratory settings; proving it all happened by chance???
Give me a break, this isn't evolution, this is genetic engineering.
The experiments are not a hoax, but the discussion is a quite large extrapolation/speculation.
Ummm... yeahhhhh. Mutations have never occurred in nature, so this experiment couldn't possibly be valid.
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