Question

Use the information about primate traits and your knowledge of science to

answer the questions.

Primate Traits

Chimpanzees and gorillas are genetically similar, sharing more than 98 percent of their DNA. While they have many of the same body parts, the details of these body parts differ between the two species. Chimpanzees and gorillas have a difference of 2 percent in their DNA sequences, but that difference represents more than 35 million base pairs that differ in the chromosomes of every cell. These base pair changes account for the physical differences seen between the two species. One difference between the two species is the shape of their hands and feet.

Figure 1 compares a hand and a foot of a chimpanzee and a gorilla.

https://learning.k12.com/content/enforced/433791-COF_ID122940/Prot%20syn%20pic%201.png?_&d2lSessionVal=KMBsD1HjAxIAs3pF3UVYT1NJM

Answer 1

Much like a human hand, chimpanzee and gorilla hands have opposable thumbs. This adaptation is good for picking up small objects and eating with one hand. Chimpanzees have fingers that are much longer and narrower than gorillas’ fingers, and have thumbs that are slightly smaller and sit farther down on their palms than gorillas’ thumbs do. As a result, chimpanzees’ thumbs are not as fully opposable as those of gorillas. Gorillas have much wider palms and have thumbs that can rotate more easily than chimpanzees’ thumbs. This allows gorillas to pick up objects more easily than chimpanzees can. Both chimpanzees and gorillas have feet with opposable big toes. This adaptation allows them to grasp objects, including branches, with their feet. Chimpanzees spend much of their time climbing trees, but gorillas spend most of their time foraging on the ground, returning to the trees only to sleep. Gorillas can stand and move on two legs, but can run much faster on all fours. One reason for the differences in the hands and feet of chimpanzees and gorillas is due to differences in stretches of DNA called enhancers. Enhancers control the activity of genes. When certain proteins, called activators, bind to enhancers, it causes the DNA to fold and allows other molecules to bind to the DNA. The result is that genes are switched on. If the sequence of an enhancer is changed, the activator will not bind to it. As a result, the DNA will not fold and the gene will not be switched on. One enhancer sequence, called HACNS1, is thought to control the structure of the hands and feet in chimpanzees and gorillas. Scientists have found that a working version of the enhancer sequence is needed for hand and foot development to take place. They have also found that the chimpanzees contain a mutant, non-working version of HACNS1.

Figure 2 models how different versions of HACNS1 behave in a cell.

https://learning.k12.com/content/enforced/433791-COF_ID122940/Protein%20SYnthesis%20pic%202.png?_&d2lSessionVal=KMBsD1HjAxIAs3pF3UVYT1NJM

QUESTION 1:


Which statements explain the most likely cause of the difference between the

hands of chimpanzees and those of gorillas? Select the three correct answers.



Question 1 options:

A. Several individual chimpanzees all developed the same mutation at the same time, which caused them to grip branches better.


B. A single nucleotide base in the enhancer sequence changed, which caused an activator protein to bind to the enhancer sequence.


C. An individual had a genetic mutation that resulted in a hand structure with a selective advantage that was passed on to offspring.


D. Mutations in the enhancer sequences in chimpanzees resulted in the production of new activator proteins.


E. The exchange of pieces of DNA between alleles during sexual reproduction caused new combinations of DNA to form.


F. Chimpanzees used their hands for climbing more than gorillas did, so their DNA mutated to disable enhancers and caused their hands to develop differently from those of gorillas

Answer 2

@ZoeyBiocth16

Answer 3

Repost the images using a screenshot tool, you need a k12 account if you are linking directly from the site

Answer 4

here you go



Scientists have sequenced the genome of the chimpanzee and found that humans are 96 percent similar to the great ape species.

"Darwin wasn't just provocative in saying that we descend from the apes—he didn't go far enough," said Frans de Waal, a primate scientist at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. "We are apes in every way, from our long arms and tailless bodies to our habits and temperament."

Because chimpanzees are our closest living relatives, the chimp genome is the most useful key to understanding human biology and evolution, next to the human genome itself. The breakthrough will aid scientists in their mission to learn what sets us apart from other animals.

By comparing human and chimpanzee genomes, the researchers have identified several sequences of genetic code that differ between human and chimp. These sequences may hold the most promise for determining what creates human-specific traits such as speech.

"If people are asking what makes us human, they're not going to find a smoking gun [in this study]," said Evan Eichler, a genome scientist at the University of Washington in Seattle who was part of the research team. "But they're going to find suggestions for where to look."