Comparative Analysis of Human and Chimpanzee Genome - Research Paper Example

Comparative Analysis of Human and Chimpanzee Genome Numerous studies have shown that there exists a close relationship between humans and the big apes, with the chimpanzee showing the greatest similarities as compared to the other apes. Because anthropology shows that both humans and apes once shared the same ancestor, any claims of similarity would therefore, be substantively justifiable. However, in the recent times, continuous research done to determine the truth behind such an argument has indeed shown contrasting results from the commonly known aspects. Largely, recent research has clearly shown that despite the similarities that human and chimpanzees have these organisms ideally have very distinct genomes sequences. In justification of these new findings, molecular studies have been conducted and results have indeed shown that the two species exhibit some differential characteristics, mainly contributed towards genetic changes mostly on the human genomes, which have significantly contributed towards the differences in the genomes of humans and the chimpanzees. Introduction For a substantive period, scientists have always stated that there are substantive similarities between humans and chimpanzees. History has it that human beings and chimpanzees have at one time shared a common ancestor over 5 million years ago, eliciting research on the determination of the contribution factors towards such a development (Cheng et.al. 88). As science has revealed, the genome, which is the genetic material in an organism is the contributing factor towards the determination of whether an organism possesses certain similarities or differences to other. The genome is encoded in the DNA of organisms or RNA as in the case of viruses, which includes all the genes and the non-coding sequences of a DNA or RNA (Sakaki et. al. 133). Research conducted through the human genome project has established that whereas there is quite a significant difference in the genomes of individual humans, such a difference is usually smaller in comparison to the difference between the humans and the chimpanzees, their closest relatives (Gagneux and Varki 10). Based on this perspective, it has been an aspect of substantive importance conducting a comparative analysis of these two organisms, for the determination of whether there are indeed similarities or not. This paper, therefore, establishes a comparative analysis of the human and chimpanzee to establish that indeed the two exhibit significant differences (Gnerre and Reich 4). Comparison between Human and Chimpanzee Genomes Comparing between the human and chimpanzee genomes requires an in-depth research involving a determination of each of the genome sequences before making any conclusion. Studies of genome have also been of substantive importance considering that there has been a widely held expectation that such studies would contribute to advancement in the diagnosis and treatment of diseases as well as the provision of new insights into different fields of study such as biology and human evolution. Using the human genomic project, almost complete sequences of the human genomes have been sequenced by DNA sequencing; however, the project has not been understood (Sakaki et. al. 169). The chimpanzee genome sequence on its part has been a long awaited project to open up ways through which explorations could be done. Such explorations would mainly entail two major aspects, which are primate evolution and the contributions that genetics have on human physiology and disease. Numerous changes have occurred in both the humans and the chimpanzee genomes over the years, posing a great challenge inclined towards the identification of the evolutionary, physiological, and the biomedical aspects pertaining to the differences in the different genomes (Eder, Erich and King 109). Once the differential identifications are made, then the data obtained is then integrated with the available knowledge, based on the environmental influences, which is considered the greatest contributing factor towards the differences observed in the genomes (Gnerre and Reich 12). Considering that genomes are usually encoded in DNAs of organisms or RNAs as it is with viruses, a comparative study of the human and chimpanzee genome is majorly based on the differences in the DNA molecules that these organisms possess (Gagneux and Varki 10). First, the common knowledge that there is up to 98% resemblance in the DNA make up of humans and chimpanzees is indeed a misleading conception (Cohen 58). Ideally, there exist many numerous differences, though their quantification is quite a tedious task. Evidently, there are three major genetic differences between the humans and the chimpanzees. The major differences observed in the human and chimpanzee DNAs include the point that humans have DNA molecules made up of 23 pairs of chromosomes, whereas chimpanzees have 24 pairs chromosomes (Sakaki et. al. 212). Scientists have attributed to such an observation to aspects such as environmental differences occurring evolutionarily. In this perspective, it is stated that one of the human chromosomes has been formed because of the fusion of two small chromosomes, rather than through intrinsic difference, which results separate creations as observed in the chimpanzee. Each end to a DNA molecule is usually comprised a telomere, which refers to repeating DNA sequences. In chimpanzees, there are 23 kilobases of such repeats while on the other hand, the human have a unique type of repetition among all the other primates with a shorter telomere of 10 kilobases (Cheng et.al. 92). Despite the fact that both humans and the chimpanzees have 18 pairs of chromosomes that exhibit resemblance, there is always a difference in the genes and their makers on the chromosomal order on chromosomes 4, 9, and 12. In addition to this, the Y chromosome varies in size and marker types in the humans and the chimpanzee (Eder, Erich and King 127). Based on these differences in the DNA make-ups in humans and chimpanzees, it is evidently clear that two organisms exhibit significant differences, which are then reflected on to the genomes (Gagneux and Varki 24). Sequencing of the Chimpanzee Genome to Human Genome and DNA The different molecular studies conducted have confirmed that indeed, humans are the closest evolutionary relatives to the large apes such as chimpanzee. By such a study perspective, it is clear that humans are able to learn more about themselves through the study of the differences and similarities in chimpanzees. There are however certain obvious distinctions in these organisms such as the enlarged brain in humans and the complexity of language use. For an inner understanding of the two mammals, it is essential that a study pertaining to the sequencing of their genome and DNA is conducted to reveal more information pertaining the differences and similarities existing in both the humans and the chimpanzees (Sakaki et. al. 106). Genome comparisons between the humans and the chimpanzees is very important in the revelation of the molecular aspects pertaining to each species, which also include important aspects such as mutational processes that have occurred in the organisms as well as the different selective constraints (Gagneux and Varki 72). Despite starting less than a decade ago when chimpanzee genome sequences was least known and of minute significance in the numerous sequencing centers, the information obtained from the process has become of significant importance as it has provided researchers with a wealth of genetic comparative information. In the process, a sequence from a single male of the Pan troglodytes verus subspecies was used. The process that involved a whole-genome shotgun approach to ABC library revealed some crucial information pertaining to the two organisms (Goodman and Heath 108). First, the project identified that there existed polymorphisms within the chimpanzee family. Additionally, the information revealed that there is indeed high quality and completeness of the human genome sequence, which established the ancestral states of single nucleotide polymorphisms (Goodman and Heath 115). Defining the Important Differences With the above process successfully complete and the two genomic sequences’ results available, it is easier to establish the differentiating aspects in the humans and the chimpanzees. The main differentiating aspects between the chimpanzee genome and that of humans specifically involve systematic gene identification, the regulatory elements in the organisms and finally the functionally relevant regions of the genome (Eder, Erich and King 98). Ideally, this aspect involves the exploration of the integration of different gene materials and their interactions with varied physiological, cultural, and the environmental factors, which contribute significantly towards the development of varied phenotypically acquired characteristics. By simply noting the differences in the genomic sequences for humans and chimpanzees shows little alienation addressing the particular lineage that indeed experienced change over the period. First, it is important that the original state is determined in order to establish an in-depth understanding of the differences that the two groups of organisms have experienced over the years. Considering that for critical analysis of the genomic differences in the chimpanzees and humans, requires the sequencing of an additional primate genome to specifically identify the changes that could have occurred in the genomic structure and sequence, contributing to differences that have been observed over the years (Goodman and Heath 132). Based on such a perspective, a gorilla genome was also studied in an urge to identify certain genomic features with cognitive functions. In spite of using this particular approach to study the difference, it is evident that the gorilla could have probably lost certain cognitive abilities and therefore, would not easily provide the differences (Eder, Erich and King 173). However, an in-depth into the study into the genomic sequences between the chimpanzees and humans has revealed that major changes have actually occurred on the human genomes through process of chromosomal inversion by deletions and insertions. Insertions and deletions involve a number of nucleotides in a genome ranging from a few to tens of kilobases, which indeed have a significant impact on the particular gene structure, expression and the entire functionality (Goodman and Heath 218). Based on the aspect that the difference on the chimpanzee and humans contributed by the deletions and insertions are fewer as compared to those of single nucleotide divergences, point directly to the idea that these changes have been adaptive over time (Cohen 79). The changes in the chromosomal sequence have ideally been the contributions towards the differences in humans and chimpanzees genomes. Additionally, these contributions are greatly influenced by aspects such as the environmental conditions, cultural diversities, and the physiological factors, which have changed the phenotypically acquired characteristics in both humans and the chimpanzees. Chimpanzee Genome Project Chimpanzee Genome Project explains the effort by which the DNA sequence is determined in a chimpanzee genome (Cheng et.al. 89). This has ideally been the best way to determine the significant differences between the human genome and apes such as chimpanzee, considering that previous studies have stated that they two evidently have substantive similarities, even though the current characteristics display a significant contrast to any similarity in the ancestry of the two organisms (Polavarapu 77). The human and chimpanzee genomes have been identified as similar to great lengths with the sole difference seen in the basis that the human genome has a fewer chromosomal pairs compared to other apes, chimpanzee included (Cohen 102). A critical analysis of the human genome has now established significant differences in the genetic genome of the humans and the chimpanzees. The changes have ideally been contributed by various factors such as the thirty-five million single nucleotide changes on the human chromosome, five million of events of deletion and insertion as well as other chromosomal changes, which have in return changed the characteristics of humans (Eder, Erich and King 211). Based on these findings, it is clear that genetic duplication process is the greatest contributor towards the genomic changes between humans and the chimpanzees, with single base changes contributing towards about half of the differential changes in the humans and chimpanzees. After a careful study of both the human and chimpanzee genomes through the Chimpanzee Genome Project, the results reveal that the major change in human and chimpanzee genome that has contributed towards the differences experienced is as a contribution of the fusion of ancestral chromosomes 2A and 2B to produce the human chromosome 2 (Cohen 49). However, during the fusion process, no genes were lost, with the point of fusion having approximately 150,000 base pairs of sequence, which are actually missing in the 2A and the 2B chimpanzee chromosomes. In additional to these changes in the human and chimpanzee genomes, there is also the linking of additional PGML/FOXD/CBWD genes near the p end of chromosome 9 (Eder, Erich and King 166). It is evident that the differential changes in the human genomes have contributed to confer elements of selective advantage over the chimpanzee genomes. This is evident in the larger brain capacity that humans possess and physiological complexities in comparison to the chimpanzees. New Research about the Comparison between Human and Chimpanzee With every new research into the comparative analysis between the human and chimpanzee genomes, new findings are reached every day. It is substantively clear that with more research into this area of study, more evidence pointing towards the finding of more factors that have contributed towards the differences observable between humans and chimpanzees. Recently, researchers have established that there are three key genes involved in inflammation could have been deleted in the chimpanzee genome providing the humans a better inflammatory response and immune responses. With more researches to be conducted, it is evident that more aspects pertaining to the differences in human and chimpanzee genomes will soon be discovered. Conclusion From a comparison analysis of human and chimpanzee genomes, it is conclusive that despite the similarities that the two have had from sharing an ancestor, studies have ideally shown that significant changes have occurred in the genome sequences of the two species. That has indeed contributed towards the differences that are currently observed in both the human and chimpanzee genomes. Additionally, the genomic changes have also contributed towards the diverse changes in the phenotypes of the two species of organisms. Critically, this particular research is just but a start of more researches in the diverse fields. It is evidently that as other sequences emerge within the years to come in the DNAs of other primates, it is evident that more differences are likely to be realized as has been shown previously and now. Works Cited Cheng Zentra, Ventura M et al. "A genome-wide comparison of recent chimpanzee and human segmental duplications". 437 (7055): 88–93, 2005. Print. Cohen, Jon. Characterization of transcript isoform variations in human and chimpanzee. New York: Edinburgh University Press, 2009. Print. Eder, G., Erich Kaiser, and Frederick A. King. The role of the chimpanzee in research. Basel: Karger, 1994. Print. Fairbanks, Daniel J.. Relics of eden the powerful evidence of evolution in human dna. Unabridged. ed. Amherst, NY: Prometheus Books, 2014. Print. 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