Stratnerd
New member
and to add on some more... recombination also adds to gene pool diversity. But the effect of mutation depends if we are talking about DNA or actually changing amino acid sequences. 33% of DNA can change without having any effect on peptide sequence (given that the first two DNA bases determines the AA sequence in a codon [=three adjacent bases]). Then the likelihood of a amino acid change having an effect depends on the importance of the protein and the change in protein configuration with the mutation. I have friends that studied allozymes (different forms of an enzyme) as population markers (no longer fashionable to use allozymes) so changing the peptide sequence does not equal death.
Unless downright lethal, the effect of a mutation is contextual as we know from actual experiments. So, assuming there is an effect, a mutation can be negative or positive (relating to fitness) depending on the environmental context.
Unless downright lethal, the effect of a mutation is contextual as we know from actual experiments. So, assuming there is an effect, a mutation can be negative or positive (relating to fitness) depending on the environmental context.