Scientists open new chapter in evolution research

SEOUL, Oct. 19 (Yonhap) -- Scientists from South Korea helped open a new chapter
in the research on evolution by deciphering the genetic sequence of a common
bacteria, a state-run laboratory said Monday.

The Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology (KRIBB) said its
researchers -- in cooperation with scientists from the United States and France
-- have for the first time checked the sequence genomes of an organism that has
undergone changes for 40,000 generations.
The findings published as a article in the online edition of "Nature" used
advanced NimbleGen and Illumina methods to determine the sequence of the
Escherichia coli (E. coli) bacteria.
E. Coli is commonly found in the lower intestine of warm-blooded organisms and
are frequently used as indicator organism.
"The discovery is noteworthy because it is the first of its kind in the world,
despite considerable scientific and commercial interest in this field," said Kim
Ji-hyun, principle research scientist at KRIBB's Genome Research Center.
He said tests conducted with E. coli samples carefully cultivated by Richard E.
Lenski of Michigan State University for over 20 years also showed an undetermined
difference between the evolution of the bacteria over time and the so-called
fitness of such microorganisms to adapt to changes.
"Genomic evolution occurred consistently up to 20,000 generations as expected,
although 'fitness adaptations' to cope with changes spiked at the beginning
before falling off towards the end," the expert said.
The research in charge of the six-year project said more research must be
conducted to determine why this occurs, since it would be normal if adaptations
roughly followed genomic evolution. He added that there was a sudden surge in
mutations after 26,500 generations.
"This may be due to clonal interference," he speculated, adding that detailed
studies need to be conducted on this matter.
Kim and Oh Tae-kwang, head of KRIBB's Microbial Genomics and Application Center,
said the latest findings due out on the 150th anniversary of the publication of
Charles Darwin's "The Origin of Species" are significant because they can improve
scientific horizons and have considerable industrial potential.
"The latest discovery could permit fine-tuning of E. coli and other organisms
that can be used to make medical drugs, value-added chemical compounds and even
ethanol fuel," Oh claimed. He pointed out that in such areas as chemicals, a gain
in efficiency of a few percent can translate into meaningful competitiveness.
Such advances will take time, but can give scientists a way to artificially
affect natural evolution that can benefit mankind.
Besides Kim and Lenski, Dominique Schneider of the Joseph Fourier University in
France contributed to the paper.
yonngong@yna.co.kr
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