tagged w/ Genomes
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CNN...
First gorilla genome map offers clues to human evolution
By Matthew Knight, CNN
updated 12:17 PM EST, Thu March 8, 2012 | Filed under: Innovations
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STORY HIGHLIGHTS
Scientists have completed the DNA map of an African western lowland gorilla
Research hopes to shed light on human evolution and biology
Western lowland gorilla population estimated to be 100-200,000 individuals in the wild
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(CNN) -- The first complete gorilla genome has been mapped by scientists giving fresh insights into our own origins.
Gorilla are the last of the genus of living great apes (humans, chimpanzees, gorillas and orang-utans) to have their DNA decoded, offering new perspectives on their evolution and biology.
"The gorilla genome is important because it sheds light on the time when our ancestors diverged from our closest evolutionary cousins around six to 10 million years ago," says Aylwyn Scally, postdoctoral fellow at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, Cambridge and lead author of the report.
"It also lets us explore the similarities and differences between our genes and those of gorilla, the largest living primate," he added.
A team of researchers examined more than 11,000 genes in humans, chimpanzees and gorillas, looking for evolutionary clues.
Initial findings have revealed that 15% of the gorilla genome is closer to human DNA than to our nearest evolutionary relative, the chimpanzee.
Researchers found that genes relating to sensory perception, hearing and brain development showed "accelerated evolution" in all three, but particularly in humans and gorillas.
Having the entire length of the gorilla genome now means scientists can start to compare all the four great apes at every position on the genome, Scally says.
It forms the baseline, he says, from which to move forwards and really explore why and when our genes and those of the great apes diverged.
"Did it happen quite quickly or was it something that gradually happened? At the moment we don't know," he said.
"It could have been some climatic change that separated humans in the east of Africa from chimpanzees in the forest -- that's an idea some have floated. If we can see some imprint of it in the genome that would very, very useful information."
Scientists used the DNA of a female western lowland gorilla (called Kamilah) who resides at San Diego Zoo.
In the wild, it is the most widespread species of gorilla, according to the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), with a estimated population of 100-200,000 individuals.
The majority are found in Cameroon, Central African Republic, west Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon and Angola.
It's cousin, the eastern lowland gorilla is less prevalent (fewer than 20,000 individuals) and can only be found in the rainforests of the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, says WWF.
The research is published in the science journal Nature.
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PHOTO (ABOVE):
The complete DNA of a female western lowland gorilla called Kamilah (left) has been mapped by scientists, completing the set of genomes for all great apes (humans, chimpanzees, gorillas and orang-utans).
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.CNN...
First gorilla genome map offers clues to human evolution
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Biologists can tell a lot about how living things evolved by rooting around in their genes, comparing snippets of DNA from supposedly related — or unrelated — species. This only works, of course, if catalogs of those DNA snippets exist. Which they largely don’t yet — but could in the not-too-distant future. At least, that is, if a consortium of researchers gets its way — and a boatload of money.
Earlier this year, a group of scientists launched the Genome 10K Project. Its aim: to collect tissues or cells from at least 10,000 vertebrate species — enough to catalog DNA sequences from about every vertebrate genus. The project has gained a lot of momentum and the support of researchers at more than 40 zoos, museums, universities and other research centers. Dozens of these scientists have now lent their names as authors to a new Journal of Heredity paper, posted early, online, today, describing what they hope to learn.
And that’s simple, says geneticist David Haussler of the University of California, Santa Cruz: “We want to see evolution in action.”
Really? By looking at the DNA from a single male and female of each of thousands of different critters?
Many species host identical long stretches of DNA. What’s interesting is where they differ. And sometimes a huge difference in the appearance of animals — say humans and chimps — may trace to less than a 2 percent difference in their genes, Haussler says. To find out where particular traits emerged and when, geneticists can look for the time in the distant past when the gene for one or more traits mutated.
By knowing when animals diverged in the archeological record and what traits are associated with that split, Haussler says, scientists can now tie those new traits to particular genes. From that, they can essentially date when these novel features emerged, and how broadly they’ve spread among seemingly related species. “That’s witnessing evolution in action,” he explains.
Despite its 10K name, the project actually seeks to map the DNA of 16,203 species. It’s an unusual and explicit figure. It’s also the number of species for which tissues or cellular samples already exist in storage somewhere — perhaps at a zoo or in some museum freezer. Yes freezer. None of these species need be killed for the first round of genomic analyses — because “they’ve already gone to their maker,” observes geneticist Stephen O’Brien. The chief of the National Cancer Institute’s genomic-diversity laboratory, he’s able to contribute quite a few such samples from the dearly departed.
But with current DNA-sequencing costing $50,000 to $100,000 per test sample, the Genome 10K Project would break the research community’s bank. So its designers have decided to wait for sequencing costs to drop by a factor of 10 or more — probably in the next couple years — before launching their analytical program in earnest. By that point, the whole project might be accomplished for something around $50 million, Haussler suspects.
Once the Genome 10K Project begins transcribing DNA blueprints for each vertebrate genus on Earth, biologists risk becoming buried by an avalanche of data. We’re talking about petabytes — roughly a billion gigabytes — of information that must be collected, analyzed and stored, Haussler says. That too can be costly. But he looks forward to having that problem — more comparative genetic data than he knows what to do with.Biologists can tell a lot about how living things evolved by rooting around in their... more
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"...We have obtained evidence of a significant genetic difference between present-day Europeans and a representative prehistoric human..." said Franco Rollo of the University of Camerino in Italy one of the authors of the study.Researchers have mapped the mitochondrial genome of one of the world's oldest... more
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Although a few scientists have offered themselves up for the so-called 'gene mapping,' this will be the first time such a large quantity of people have undergone the research. Previous 'maps' have come from Craig Venter and the controversially 'part-African' DNA pioneer, Dr. Watson.
Praise for the research has already been received from the UK and China with them saying that "the project will create the most useful catalogue ever of genetic variation."
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Dr. James Watson, the DNA pioneer, claimed black Africans are genetically less intelligent than white Europeans. But that was before he released his own genome on the internet and somebody decoded it, revealing that he has more African genes than the average European.
"An analysis of Dr Watson's genome shows 16 of his genes are likely to have come from a black ancestor of African descent. By contrast, most people of European descent would have no more than one such gene."
Dr. Watson, please open your mouth. Insert foot.
Isn't irony delicious?
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