[/caption]In the article 'Living
Fossil' Gets Its Genome Sequenced, it states that analysis of the coelacanth
genome helps explain how some fish moved to land and others changed very little
over time. It was believed that the coelacanth went extinct 70,000 years ago,
but in 1938 some fisherman caught one. It looked remarkably similar to its ancestor
who lived 300,000 years ago. The coelacanth are very rare and they live in deep
sea caves. They die imeadiatly after being caught because they cannot adjust to
the pressure change or the sunlight. This makes them very difficult to study. Fishermen
were taught how to preserve their tissue if they ever caught one. In 2003,
fishermen collected a sample of tissue. In 2011, their genome was sequenced.
Since then, scientist have been analyzing the data. They have concluded that
coelacanth genes change much slower than other organisms. They also found a
fragment of DNA that may have been crucial to making limb ends that helped fish
move onto land. An article in Science Daily states that this research
“gives us our first comprehensive look at the coelacanth's
place in our evolutionary history, and provides fascinating insights into the
specific vertebrate genes involved in the critical transition from water to
land”
I believe that this is an important scientific discovery, because it will help us gain a greater understanding of evolution.
I posted the same article: its so interesting! Its crazy to think that this creature may shed so much light onto a question that has been baffling scientists for forever, this question about the link between fish us land walkers! So cool.
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