Intellectual Property & Your Health Series - Comparative genomics

Source: Britannica

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Comparative genomics

A further application of genomics is in the study of evolutionary relationships. Using classical genetics, evolutionary relationships can be studied by comparing the chromosome size, number, and banding patterns between populations, species, and genera. However, if full genomic sequences are available, comparative genomics brings to bear a resolving power that is much greater than that of classical genetics methods and allows much more subtle differences to be detected. This is because comparative genomics allows the DNAs of organisms to be compared directly and on a small scale. Overall, comparative genomics has shown high levels of similarity between closely related animals, such as humans and chimpanzees, and, more surprisingly, similarity between seemingly distantly related animals, such as humans and insects. Comparative genomics applied to distinct populations of humans has shown that the human species is a genetic continuum, and the differences between populations are restricted to a very small subset of genes that affect superficial appearance such as skin colour. Furthermore, because DNA sequence can be measured mathematically, genomic analysis can be quantified in a very precise way to measure specific degrees of relatedness. Genomics has detected small-scale changes, such as the existence of surprisingly high levels of gene duplication and mobile elements within genomes.

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