Molecular evolution is the biological process encompassing changes in the nucleotide sequences of DNA or RNA and the amino acid sequences of proteins over time, driven by mutation, recombination, genetic drift, natural selection, and other population-level forces. It focuses on the rates and patterns of substitutions, insertions, deletions, and genome rearrangements, as well as the emergence of new genes and regulatory elements. Molecular evolution underlies divergence among species, functional innovation, and conservation of essential biomolecules, and is quantitatively analyzed using models of sequence evolution, comparative genomics, and phylogenetic inference to elucidate evolutionary relationships and constraints at the molecular level.
How did life leap from simple microbial cells to the complex, structured cells that make up animals, plants, and fungi? A new study in The EMBO Journal by researchers at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) offers fresh ...
Evolution
Aug 15, 2025
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In medicine and biotechnology, the ability to evolve proteins with new or improved functions is crucial, but current methods are often slow and laborious. Now, Scripps Research scientists have developed a synthetic biology ...
Biotechnology
Aug 8, 2025
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301
Proteins are life's molecular workhorses, doing everything from turning sunlight into food to fighting viruses. They are built from 20 different types of amino acid molecules, so even a small protein made of 60 amino acids ...
Molecular & Computational biology
Jul 24, 2025
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199
A new international study suggests that ancient viral DNA embedded in our genome, which were long dismissed as genetic "junk," may actually play powerful roles in regulating gene expression. Focusing on a family of sequences ...
Cell & Microbiology
Jul 18, 2025
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211
Researchers at the Yale School of Public Health have discovered the evolutionary rhythm of gene expression, showing that changes happen at strikingly varied rates.
Cell & Microbiology
Jul 18, 2025
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Unraveling the genetic mechanisms behind adaptive evolution stands as a pivotal challenge in molecular biology. While organisms often exhibit rapid phenotypic adjustments to environmental shifts, the underlying genomic processes ...
Evolution
Jul 18, 2025
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29
An international research team has deciphered a mechanism of the evolutionary arms race in human cells. The findings provide insights into how mobile elements in DNA hijack cellular functions—and how cells can defend themselves ...
Molecular & Computational biology
Jul 11, 2025
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118
Proteins degrade over time, making their history hard to study. But new research has uncovered ancient proteins in the enamel of the teeth of 18-million-year-old fossilized mammals from Kenya's Rift Valley, opening a window ...
Evolution
Jul 9, 2025
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54
Enzymes catalyze chemical reactions in organisms—without which life would not be possible. Leveraging AlphaFold2 artificial intelligence, researchers at Charité—Universitätsmedizin Berlin have now succeeded in analyzing the ...
Evolution
Jul 9, 2025
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25
A team of researchers has developed a method that could transform the field of protein engineering. The new approach, called AI-informed Constraints for protein Engineering (AiCE), enables rapid and efficient protein evolution ...
Biotechnology
Jul 8, 2025
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