This page was created for University of Wisconsin undergraduate course Genetics 564
What is Homology?
Homology is the study of relatedness between two different species due to common ancestry. This study can be done comparing anatomies, as shown in figure 1 [1], which demonstrates the similarities in forelimb bone structure among birds, dolphins, and humans. This comparison can also be done for DNA codes within the genome of two different species. When two animals share the same or very similar genetic codes for a particular gene, that indicates not only that the species once had a common ancestor, but that the gene has some vital importance within the body such that it has not been altered or lost over thousands of generations.
DNA homology is important in scientific research because the presence of the same gene in other model organism species allows for scientific research to be conducted without the ethical and financial problems of human study research. Thus by studying the same gene and protein present in the genome of other species, we can learn a lot about our own human use of that gene.
DNA homology is important in scientific research because the presence of the same gene in other model organism species allows for scientific research to be conducted without the ethical and financial problems of human study research. Thus by studying the same gene and protein present in the genome of other species, we can learn a lot about our own human use of that gene.
Homology of the EFHC1 Gene
Homologs in other species of the EFHC1 gene were found using BLAST, a computer program which takes segments of human DNA and searches for matches in other species. The image below represents the percent sequence identity to the human EFHC1 gene, and are listed from most related to least related homologs.
Analysis:
EFHC1 has many homologs in other organisms. The sequence identities for human EFHC1 and the other species are incredibly high, indicating how important the EFHC1 sequence is for organism survival in that it has not been massively mutated throughout the generations. Because of the high sequence similarities, with chimpanzee's being the highest at 99% identical and mice being the lowest listed here at 82%, this information indicates the significant importance of EFHC1 in each of the organisms here.
EFHC1 has many homologs in other organisms. The sequence identities for human EFHC1 and the other species are incredibly high, indicating how important the EFHC1 sequence is for organism survival in that it has not been massively mutated throughout the generations. Because of the high sequence similarities, with chimpanzee's being the highest at 99% identical and mice being the lowest listed here at 82%, this information indicates the significant importance of EFHC1 in each of the organisms here.
Human (homo sapiens) - EFHC1
FASTA Accession Number: NM_018100 Chimpanzee (pan paniscus) - EFHC1 % Identity: 99% FASTA Accession Number: XM_003833152 E-value: 0.0 Horse (equus caballus) - EFHC1 % Identity: 88% FASTA Accession Number: XM_001498967 E-value: 0.0 Mouse (mus musculus) - EFHC1 % Identity: 82% FASTA Accession Number: NM_027974 E-value: 0.0 |
Dog - (canis lupus) - EFHC1
Percent Identity: 88% FASTA Accession: XM_532170 E-value: 0.0 Dolphin - (tursiops truncatus ) - EFHC1 Percent Identity: 90% FASTA Accession: XM_004330741 E-value: 0.0 Cat - (felis catus) - EFHC1 Percent Identity: 89% FASTA Accession: XM_003986234 E-value: 0.0 |
References:
1. http://www.universitycad.com/ID.htm
2. Blast. http://blast.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/Blast.cgi