AGB 121: Principles of Animal Genetics and Population Genetics (2+1)

MUTATION FREQUENCY

• Although mutation is necessary to provide the genetic variability required for the evolutionary adaptability of species to environmental changes, most mutations are deleterious.
• Each gene probability has its own characteristic mutational behaviour.
• Some genes undergo mutations more frequently than others in the same organism.
• A wide range of mutation rates exists among genes that are considered stable.
• The mutation rate per gene in bacteria is on the order of 1 in 100,000 to 1 in 10 million per cell generation.
• For fruit flies the average mutation rate in a particular gene is 1 in 100,000 gametes.
• Genes associated with human traits such as intestinal polyposis and muscular dystrophy have been estimated to mutate once in 10⁴ to 10⁵ people.