EVOLUTION AND MEDICINE

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There is no question that evolution is the major unifying concept in biology and that “nothing in biology makes sense except in the light

of evolution”. (Dobzhansky,1973)

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EVOLUTIONS GREATEST BENEFITS WILL BE TO PROVIDE A THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK FOR UNDERSTANDING:

• Why organisms are vulnerable to disease

• How infectious agents evolve

• How common ancestry helps scientists use the results from animal models to understand issues related to human health

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• Use scientific inquiry to try to understand two fundamental observations about living organisms:• Diversity• Evolution

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EVOLUTION

• Refers to change• Changes refers specifically to a change in allele frequencies in a

population; this is heritable and occurs over successive generations.

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MAJOR QUESTIONS EVOLUTIONARY BIOLOGIST ASK:

1. What mechanism of evolution caused a change in a lineage or trait?

2. What is the evolutionary history, or phylogeny, of a living lineage or a specific trait?

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1.1 PROCESS OF EVOLUTION

• Descent as in “descent with modification” emphasizes the history of lineages.

• Modification refers to that lineages change over time.

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CAUSES IN CHANGE?

Four different mechanisms:

1) mutation

2) gene flow (migration)

3) genetic drift

4) natural selection

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MUTATION

ALL genetic variation arises from mutation.

Genetic recombination reshuffling existing variation.

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GENE FLOW

Also known as migration, is the movement of alleles from one population into another through immigration and emigration of individuals.

Typically reduces genetic differences.

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GENETIC DRIFT

Random changes in allele frequencies due to chance or sampling error.

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NATURAL SELECTIONProposed by Alfred Wallace and Darwin

1) Individuals in a population vary for characteristics.

2) Inheritable traits

3) Individuals with certain traits have more children than others

Conclusion: Individuals that possess heritable traits that enable them to better survive and reproduce will leave more offspring and these traits will increase in frequency over

future generations.

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NATURAL SELECTION

• Natural Selection: A process that can cause evolution. This process can result in adaptations. It can be summarized as five principles:

• 1. variation: Individuals within a population vary in many traits, including physical and biochemical traits.

• 2. inheritance: Some of the differences in traits among individuals can be passed from parents to offspring. (Some variation is heritable.)

• 3. origin of variation: Some of the variation in traits among individuals has a genetic basis. This variation originated, often many generations ago, as mutations—changes in the genetic information that are random with respect to the needs of the organism.

• 4. fitness: Both the environment and the traits that individuals possess affect survival and reproduction. Individuals with heritable traits that enable them to better survive and reproduce in a particular environment will leave relatively more offspring.

• 5. evolutionary change in populations: The frequency of traits and the alleles that affect those traits change in a population over time.

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1.2 COMMON ANCESTRY

Evolutionary trees (phylogenies): summary of the history of the relationship among organisms.

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• Alleles associated with specific phenotypes are more frequent in different geographical origin populations. (i.e. Ashkenazi Jewish have higher frequency of BRCA 1 and 2).

• So if ancestry is known, scientist/ doctors can provide specific genetic conditions which may influence genetic testing.

• The evolutionary origin of pathogens is now routinely investigated by using phylogenetic methods.

• Phylogenetic analysis has been used to determine 2 types of HIV, SARS, and that bats are the reservoir for coronavirus.

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• What is Staphylococcus aureus?

• Staphylococcus aureus is a species of bacterium. This species is often called “staph.” These bacteria are spherical in shape and sometimes form clusters that look like grapes (see Figure 1). These bacteria are commonly found on the skin or in the nose of healthy people. They are also found on other animals, such as cows, pigs, and chickens. About one in three people have populations of S. aureus in their nose. In most cases, this does not cause any illness. But sometimes, S. aureus does cause infections. While most are minor skin infections, some are serious, especially if the bacteria get into the body through a wound, such as a cut. They are frequent causes of infections after surgery, bloodstream infections, and pneumonia. Like other bacteria, S. aureus reproduce by binary fission. When an S. aureus cell divides, it produces two daughter cells that have the same genetic instructions. However, mutation introduces genetic variation into a population of bacteria.

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STAPH AUREUS

Figure 1. Staphylococcusaureus. These bacteria areabout 1/1,000th millimeter indiameter. If lined up in singlefile, more than 25,000 of them would be 2.5 centimeters (1 inch) long.

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WHAT IS MRSA?

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_7qLlRHxQO4

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• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6YFLkRlZzXw

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•MRSA Outbreak ??

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Staph Infection Popping Up Across North Carolina

It's a common bacteria found on millions of people, but a resistant form of staph infection called MRSA has been popping up across North Carolina. It is blamed in the death of a Virginia teenager.

A handful of cases were confirmed in Buncombe, Mecklenburg, Forsyth, Guilford, Orange, Northampton, Cumberland, Robeson and Duplin counties. State health officials stressed that the cases do not constitute an outbreak, however.

The most recent MRSA case was detected in Northampton County at Willis Hare Elementary School in Pendleton. Officials declined to identify whether it was a student or a staff member who was infected.

The school district was following protocols established by the state Division of Public Health to contain the infection, officials said. Hand sanitizers were provided in classrooms, and an extra janitor was assigned to the school to provide additional cleaning in the cafeteria and other common areas.

Letters were sent to the parents of the students in the elementary school, and an automated telephone message was sent Thursday night to the parents and school staff. No schools were expected to close because of the infection, officials said.

Another case of MRSA was also confirmed in a student-athlete at Purnell Swett High School in Robeson County. School officials sent out a letter Friday to parents explaining the situation. They also cleaned the locker room and areas where students might have been exposed. WRAL contacted school districts across the viewing area, and all were taking extra precautions to make sure campuses were clean. They've also informed students and staff about ways to protect themselves.

Cumberland County was handling five cases of MRSA. In the past three weeks, five inmates at the local jail were infected. Two remain at the facility, and three were transported to a hospital for treatment. The detention center was conducting a staph-infection-awareness class for all employees

Hospitals are also a common place for the MRSA bacteria. Studies show more than 126,000 hospitalized patients are infected each year. As of Friday, UNC Hospitals said 55 percent of its patients with skin infections had MRSA.

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The germ has been called a Super Bug because of its resilience. Numbers on how widespread it is in North Carolina were hard to come by because doctors and hospitals do not have to report cases to the state.

Also, it can often be confused with other infections. One Orange County man quickly found out this was something different, however. Monroe Thompson, an electrician in Hillsborough, was at work when he noticed the red, tender bump on his hand about five months ago.

“First, I thought it was a spider bite. That’s what all the people told me. ‘You got a spider bite. You got a spider bite,’” he said.

The bump looked like a large boil or pimple.

“And it kept getting worse and worse and worse, and that’s when I figure I better do something,” Thompson said.

He checked into an emergency room when he had a fever of 104, and he had to stay several days. Doctors found he had MRSA. “I kind of felt like I was coming down with the flu when I had the fever,” he said. Thompson was given antibiotics, which he said helped clear it up in a couple of weeks. He said his doctor suggested that he pour a bottle cap full of Clorox in his bathwater to kill germs. Thompson, who still wears a scar on his hand, said he has no idea where he got it. Hospitals are a common source, but it could be anywhere.

“It can occur among sports teams, close contact, school, military recruits – anywhere there are crowds and people have close contact,” said Dr. David Weber, a physician at UNC Hospitals.

Weber said most patients admitted for staph infections have what's known as community-associated MRSA. It's acquired by otherwise healthy people who are not infected at hospitals.

“This has dramatically increased over the last two or three years compared to five or 10 years ago,” Weber said. Linda Shambley, also of Hillsborough, said she has had at least six staph infections since July and thinks she might have gotten them from a hospital stay. Her doctor told her it was not MRSA, but now she's taking extra precautions.

“Now I’m even scared to go in the public bathroom,” Shambley said. Around her home, she tries to keep everything as clean as possible. “As soon as I come in, I go and wash my hands with anti-bacterial soap, because I don’t want to catch this stuff again.”

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• Has anyone been affected by MRSA or know anyone that has been affected by MRSA?

• Are you willing to share your story?

• http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15689585

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CLASSWORK

1. Researcher developed the antibiotic methicillin to treat people with infections of S. aureus that are resistant to penicillin. Within two years, populations of S. aureus that were resistant to methicillin started showing up in hospitals. How would a scientists explain how the change may have occurred in S. aureus populations?

2. How can the study of evolution (such as the adaptation of bacterial populations to an antibiotic) help researchers improve people’s health? EXPLAIN your initial ideas.

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PRIOR CONCEPTIONS ABOUT EVOLUTION

Evolution is Only a TheoryAcquired Characteristics can be InheritedSpecies have an underlying nature that Cannot changeNatural Selection leads to perfectionFitness means individuals are stronger or more athleticNatural selection and evolution mean the same thing

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Evolution is Only a TheoryIn science a theory is an explanation or model based on observation, experimentation, and reasoning, especially one that has been tested and confirmed as a general principle helping to explain and predict natural phenomena; not a hunch or guess

Acquired Characteristics can be InheritedOnly genetic based characteristics can be passed along.

Species have an underlying nature that Cannot changeThere is variation within species which can lead to change over time.

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Natural Selection leads to perfectionSpecies adapt to conditions in the present, but these conditions change. Adapt to survive current environment.

Fitness means individuals are stronger or more athleticCooperation is an essential aspect for survival.

Natural selection and evolution mean the same thingThere are multiple mechanisms for evolution with natural selection being just one of them.

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ANCESTRY TREE THINKING

• True understanding of biodiversity shows that all species existing today are descended from ancestors that have survived from 3.5 billion years ago.

• Plants, worms, bacteria, and humans all descend from survivors whom survived multiple mass extinctions and major environmental challenges.

• To claim one existing group is “more highly evolved” than another ignores this fact.

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Modern Species Are Ancestors: One way this misconception is manifest is the saying “humans evolved from chimpanzees.” Instead, humans and chimpanzees evolved from a common ancestor. This common ancestor may have shared characteristics with modern chimpanzees, but both the modern chimpanzee lineage and the lineage that led to humans have been evolving for the same amount of time since splitting from the common ancestor (Baum et al., 2005).

The Ordering of Species at the Tips of an Evolutionary Tree Is Always Meaningful: People do not recognize that the most closely related species are those that share the most recent common ancestor (Baum et al., 2005).

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FEATURED EXAMPLES OF EVOLUTION AND MEDICINE

• The evolution of antibiotic-resistant bacteria is a classic example of evolution by natural selection that has large impacts on humans.

• MRSA is a major abx-resistant bacteria

• It is not yet clear if community-acquired MRSA evolved from hospital-acquired MRSA or if it evolved from different strains of Staphylococcus aureus.

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• Researchers at NIH used genetic sequences and an analysis tool called an “evoprint” to demonstrate that a strain of hospital-acquired MRSA shares multiple DNA sequence blocks with Listeria monocytogenes and Staphylococcus saprophyticus (Brody et al., 2008). Both of these bacteria can also cause bovine mastitis. These data suggest that bacterial co-infections may be an important factor in the evolution of resistance.

• Evoprint – a diagram that summarizes the similarities and differences in a genetic sequence for multiple species.

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PAX6 Gene that plays a crucial role in regulating the growth of eyes

It is found on chromosome 11 and spans over 20,000 nucleotides.

Can be found in humans, fruit flies, zebrafish, mice, squid, planarians, and even ribbon worms.

Studies on Pax6 support the claim that new, complex structures are rarely built anew throughout evolution; rather, they are often assembled from preexisting structures.

Some mutations to the Pax6 gene cause the human disease aniridia. Scientists have identified over 250 such mutations in humans.

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CLASSWORK

• Worksheets – due at end of class

• Pg. 175 online book

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