Genetics of the Evolutionary ProcessIn this volume, the product of decades of study and research, the world's foremost geneticist surveys the major developments in what is emerging as the most important single area of scientific inquiry in the twentieth century: biological theory of evolution in particular. Noting that the theory of evolution in biology is more than a century old, Dr. Dobzhansky points out that it is nevertheless only in recent times that our knowledge of its physical basis as well as our understanding of its dynamics has progressed greatly. Yet, he notes, new problems have replaced the older ones at the forefront of scientific inquiry, problems which require entirely new approaches. It is to these manifold and exciting new questions that the author brings a lifetime of experience. Throughout, his goal is to create not a summary of all the available literature, nor a professional book written only for the scientific community, but rather a presentation of basic ideas, accompanied by the indispensable references which would enable interested readers to pursue the matter further. The book has been purposely kept short to enable it to be read as a whole, and above all, it has been written in a manner which will hold the attention as well as inform both the general reader and the professionally concerned scientist. |
Contents
Chapter One The Unity and Diversity of Life | 1 |
Chapter Two Genetic Continuity and Change | 30 |
Chapter Three Mutation and Genetic Variability | 66 |
Chapter Four Normalizing Natural Selection | 95 |
Chapter Five Balancing Selection and Chromosomal Polymorphisms | 126 |
Chapter Six Balancing Selection and Genetic Load | 165 |
Chapter Seven Directional Selection | 200 |
Chapter Eight Random Drift and Founder Principle | 230 |
Common terms and phrases
adaptedness adaptive alleles allopatric amino acids animals average backcross biological blood group carriers cells changes Chapter chromo colonies color cross Darwinian fitness deleterious diploid diversity Dobzhansky Drosophila melanogaster Drosophila pseudoobscura effects eggs environmental environments enzyme evolution evolutionary experimental F₁ females fertile fitness flies gametes gene arrangements gene frequencies genetic load genotypes geographic habitats hemoglobins heterosis heterotic heterozygotes heterozygous homozygotes homozygous human hybrids individuals insects inversions isolating mechanisms lations lethal living males mating Mayr meiosis Mendelian monomorphic mutation rates natural populations natural selection normal nucleotide occur organisms pairs parthenogenesis percent persimilis phenotype plants pollen polymorphisms polyploid popu populations of Drosophila produce progeny protein races random recessive recombination reproductive isolation second chromosomes semilethal semispecies sequences sexual sibling single Spassky species of Drosophila sterile strains studies sympatric tion traits translocation variability variation viability X chromosome zygotes