This module aims to:

1. Describe fundamental genetic mechanisms that are essential for the function and evolution of life;
2. Introduce students to fundamental evolutionary concepts and theories, showing how genetic mechanisms help determine the patterns of observed evolution;
3. Apply evolutionary concepts to a broad selection of areas of Life Sciences;
4. Develop in students the knowledge and understanding of the subject and the ability to apply, evaluate and interpret this knowledge to solve problems in biology.

Recall how cells evolved

Identify the causes of evolutionary change in populations

Recognize the consequences of evolutionary change for patterns of biological diversity within and amongst populations

Recall fundamental genetic mechanisms (heredity, mutation, meiosis, sex) and show how they influence evolutionary change in populations

Recognize the widespread applicability of evolutionary ideas across the Life Sciences

Lecture - This refers to timetabled lectures which explain core concepts

Workshop - Review recently covered material

Section A. Diversity of Life: Genetics and Evolution (18 lectures and three workshops)

A1. What is life?

• The origin of life
• Scope of diversity (tree of life)
• What is a species?

A2. How and why we classify diversity and the history of our hypotheses

• How does biodiversity arise (genetics, symbiosis)
• Introducing the key questions in understanding biodiversity:
• Heredity; mutation; natural selection; speciation; extinction.

A3. Principles of heredity:

• Genotype => phenotype link through environment;  
• Inheritance in Sexual vs Asexual taxa;
• Diploidy and Mendelian inheritance;
• Segregation in multi-locus traits

A4. Mutation as source of novelty.

• Types of mutation in existing DNA sequence;
• regulatory change;
• synonymous/non-synonymous;
• truncation by frame shift/stop

A5. Generation of novelty through gene duplication.

• generation of novel genes via exon shuffling,
• lateral transfer and mobile elements,
• chromosomal changes;
• genome duplication

A6. Biodiversity as represented in genome diversity

A7. What drives changes in genetic constitution within a species? < /p>

• Natural selection and adaptation,
• sexual selection

A8. The process of natural selection

• quick or slow?
• recognising an adaptation;
• does natural selection act on genes, individuals or groups?

A9. How and why do new species form?

• Patterns of macroevolution:
• Does everything happen at one rate?
• What produces new form?

A10. What drives extinction, and is this constant?

A11. Evolution of humans, and what evolution may tell us about the human condition

Section B Application of Evolutionary Ideas to the Life Sciences

This section will demonstrate the application of evolutionary ideas across the life sciences and is designed to illustrate this with scenarios appropriate to programme groupings.

After a set of common introductory lectures, students will attend selected sessions that are targetted toward their degree programme. Sections will be split with alternative “parallel” sessions for students on different programme groups (for example biomedical and human-oriented vs. nonhuman oriented programmes).

Students will be advised by their programme directors which sets of parallel sessions to attend, though every effort will be taken to make all sessions open to all students. Scenarios, may va ry from year to year, but for the current year will be as shown below: