Projektdatenbank (ab 2004)

Projektnummer

0069579

Zusammenfassung

Evolution is believed to start out from completely random mutation. This makes us unable to predict future mutations. However, researchers recently suggested that mutation may not always be random. Individual organisms can respond to their environment with a change in their physical composition. For example, snails develop sturdier shells as a defense when exposed to predators, and this is called a plastic response. The mechanism behind this phenomenon is the addition of different molecules to the DNA, and this is known as epigenetics. These molecules do not alter the DNA sequence itself, but ...