Answer to Question #24591 in Biochemistry for cathleen anderson

Question

Explain why some genes might have faster rates of evolution than other genes as populations adapt to their environments, and give an example with your explanation.

Answer 1

The mutation rate in various species at different times can also limit the rate of evolutionary change such that a higher mutation rate correlates to a higher rate of change, assuming the environmental changes remain unchanged. Mutations do not seem to have major effects on limiting evolution because diversity in morphological evolution (evolution of physical characteristics) does not correlate well with DNA mutation rates. However, in some cases, evolution rates can depend on mutation rates. A good example is antibiotic resistance. Bacterial mutation rates can induce changes in the ability to become resistance to antibiotics.