Random Mutation 600-Million-Years Ago Might Be Reason We Exist Today
- 8 years ago
University of Oregon biochemist Ken Prehoda believes his team has isolated the single, random mutation that paved the way for multicellular existence.
Our multicellular existence began over 600 million years ago, when one random mutation created a new protein function that occurs over 70 times in humans, according to University of Oregon biochemist Ken Prehoda.
Prehoda's research, based primarily on how proteins operate inside of cells, is said to be crucial in understanding many key questions about evolution.
He notes, "Proteins are the workhorses of our cells, performing a wide variety of tasks such as metabolism. But how does a protein that performs one task evolve to perform another? Our work suggests that new protein functions can evolve with a very small number of mutations. In this case, only one was required."
The discovery was based on studying single-celled organisms considered
Our multicellular existence began over 600 million years ago, when one random mutation created a new protein function that occurs over 70 times in humans, according to University of Oregon biochemist Ken Prehoda.
Prehoda's research, based primarily on how proteins operate inside of cells, is said to be crucial in understanding many key questions about evolution.
He notes, "Proteins are the workhorses of our cells, performing a wide variety of tasks such as metabolism. But how does a protein that performs one task evolve to perform another? Our work suggests that new protein functions can evolve with a very small number of mutations. In this case, only one was required."
The discovery was based on studying single-celled organisms considered