EVOLUTION OF HEMOGLOBIN IN PRIMATES

Abstract

Publisher Summary The invariant replication of the genetic material and the invariant translation of the genetic information into protein structure are conceived as the molecular basis for the maintenance of a species and its distinctness from other species. Selection on the population of organisms within which the mutational alterations occur preserves some and eliminates others. It is a continuous process. This chapter discusses the interplay between molecular and organismal aspects of the evolutionary events through the study of hemoglobin of humans and their primate relatives. Hemoglobin has been modified structurally in the course of evolution. Normal hemoglobins of various species of primates are not identical. Hemoglobin is an ideal protein for studies of molecular evolution. The study of the hemoglobins of the primates should be an unbeatable combination for evolutionary studies.