Sonic Hedgehog Research Paper

Try to compare yourself to another species, pick anything, from something as complex as an ape to something as simple as a sponge. Are you having trouble? What can we possibly have in common with a creature so abundantly different than us? Although it may come as a shock that we have anything in common with an entirely different species, we are comparable in many ways. Our similarities with other organisms may not be phenotypic. If you take a closer look into the DNA of other species and compare them to our own you will find something astonishing, we have similar genes. Many uninformed people assume that new genes and DNA are created for new species and structures; that statement is inaccurate. Our genes and DNA evolved over time, the proof …show more content…
The scientists Tabin, McMahon, and Ingham found the gene in flies that made one end of a body segment look different from another, they called it hedgehog. The mammal equivalent is called Sonic Hedgehog. Sonic Hedgehog is present in a variety of different species. The gene turns on during the same time in these various species; it works by having each digit develop differently depending on the distance from the gene.Our thumbs and pinky look different due to sonic hedgehog. An experiment was conducted where the Sonic Hedgehog from a chicken was moved to the opposite side, the result was a duplication of that limb. They continued this experiment on sharks, the result was similar to those of chicken, their fins duplicated. This shows Sonic Hedgehog has similar effects on various kinds of organisms. Another test was conducted, where they took Sonic Hedgehog from a mouse and implanted it into a skate embryo. The result showed that Sonic Hedgehog worked a similar way in skates and humans, the rods in the skate developed differently from one another depending on the distance from the gene. This shows that the genetic recipe of mammals closely resembles those of fish. Similarities with our genes to develop limbs are also seen in the fish Coelacanth, which have not evolved much over the past 400 million years. Some consider it a “living fossil”. The gene enhancer controls the development of limbs. It is present in both the coelacanth and four legged creatures, although the Coelacanth does not use the enhancer gene itself. Neil Shubin was part of the team that conducted the experiment where they took the enhancer gene from Coelacanth and injected it into a mouse, the mouse developed an almost normal mouse limb. This shows the enhancer in Coelacanth successfully let a mouse limb develop, proving the genes are similar. Its profound that a gene that makes four legged limbs is present in a fish lacking them. This