Everything about Molecular evolution
Study of changes in DNA and RNA over time
Molecular evolution describes how inherited DNA and/or RNA change over evolutionary time, and the consequences of this for proteins and other components of cells and organisms. Molecular evolution is the basis of phylogenetic approaches to describing the tree of life. Molecular evolution overlaps with population genetics, especially on shorter timescales. Topics in molecular evolution include the origins of new genes, the genetic nature of complex traits, the genetic basis of adaptation and speciation, the evolution of development, and patterns and processes underlying genomic changes during evolution. Wikipedia →
🧭 Start here: a 6-step reading path
- Read the overview: Molecular evolutionA 5-minute orientation
- Skim a recent paper: MEGA12: Molecular Evolutionary Genetic Analysis Version 12 for Adaptive and Green ComputingInfluential work since 2022
- Pick up a classic book: Introduction to genetic analysisThe most-reprinted book on the subject
- Read the landmark paper: MEGA7: Molecular Evolutionary Genetics Analysis Version 7.0 for Bigger DatasetsCited 39,804 times
- Go sideways: MutationA closely related topic
- Go sideways: Neutral mutationA closely related topic
📖 Definitions
No dictionary entry for this exact phrase.
🏆 Landmark papers (most cited)
MEGA7: Molecular Evolutionary Genetics Analysis Version 7.0 for Bigger Datasets
MEGA6: Molecular Evolutionary Genetics Analysis Version 6.0
MEGA X: Molecular Evolutionary Genetics Analysis across Computing Platforms
MEGA5: Molecular Evolutionary Genetics Analysis Using Maximum Likelihood, Evolutionary Distance, and Maximum Parsimony Methods
MEGA4: Molecular Evolutionary Genetics Analysis (MEGA) Software Version 4.0
MEGA11: Molecular Evolutionary Genetics Analysis Version 11
MEGA3: Integrated software for Molecular Evolutionary Genetics Analysis and sequence alignment
🆕 Influential since 2022
📚 Books worth reading
Introduction to genetic analysisAnthony J. F. Griffiths, Susan R. Wessler · 1993
PreyMichael Crichton · 2002
What is life? The physical aspect of the living cellErwin Schrödinger, Roger Penrose · 1944
Darwin's radioGreg Bear · 1999
Life AscendingNick Lane, Ilona Hauser · 2009
The Making of the FittestSean B. Carroll · 2006
The epigenetics revolutionNessa Carey · 2011
The journey of manSpencer Wells · 2002
Ranked by number of editions on Open Library, a rough measure of how lasting a book is.
🔗 Related topics
- Mutation In biology, a mutation is an alteration in the nucleic acid sequence of the genome of an organism, virus, or extrachromosomal DNA. Mutations result from…
- Neutral mutation Neutral mutations are changes in DNA sequence that are neither beneficial nor detrimental to the ability of an organism to survive and reproduce. In population…
- Masatoshi Nei Masatoshi Nei (根井正利, Nei Masatoshi; January 2, 1931 – May 18, 2023) was a Japanese-born American evolutionary biologist. Masatoshi Nei was born in 1931…
- Population genetics Population genetics is a subfield of genetics that deals with genetic differences within and among populations, and is a part of evolutionary biology.…
- Gene duplication Gene duplication (or chromosomal duplication or gene amplification) is a mechanism through which new genetic material is generated during molecular evolution…
- Microevolution Microevolution is the change in allele frequencies that occurs over time within a population. This change is due to four different processes: mutation…
- Mutation rate In genetics, the mutation rate is the frequency of new mutations in a single gene, nucleotide sequence, or organism over time. Mutation rates are not constant…
- Genome evolution Genome evolution is the process by which a genome changes in structure (sequence) or size over time. The study of genome evolution involves multiple fields…