Somewhat OTT, but there is a very good work of fiction that deals with rapid evolution and speciation and does talk about epigenes iirc. Anyhow its a good read and very believable - Darwin's Radio, by Greg Bear.
On breeding for color
For those of you have interested in this subject, here's the skinny.
From hiiriforumi; I asked:
When one breeds in order to achieve a change in the color of fur, is there a genetic change that occurs along with the change of appearance of the mousie?
I think there must be some sort of change of genotype when there's a change of phenotype. Nothing else makes sense, considering what I know, however little that may be.
I've been reading about Cattanach's Translocation, absorbing it slowly since the material is highly technical. If nothing else, it will be educational. Thank you all for your help and encouragement. Knowledge is the ultimate gift that keeps on giving.
The mod answers:
So... If I understand correctly, you're asking whether the differences in colour / coat / etc. in mice have a background in genetics?
I have to make sure what you meant because what I think you're asking is kind of fundamental foundation in breeding mice and understanding how colours and many other things are inherited.
The answer is: Yes they do.
You should probably read Finnmouse's "colour varieties" -pages http://www.hiiret.fi/eng/breeding/varieties/index.html and then continue to Willys K. Silvers' The Coat Colors of Mice - A Model for Mammalian Gene Action and Interaction.
From hiiriforumi; I asked:
When one breeds in order to achieve a change in the color of fur, is there a genetic change that occurs along with the change of appearance of the mousie?
I think there must be some sort of change of genotype when there's a change of phenotype. Nothing else makes sense, considering what I know, however little that may be.
I've been reading about Cattanach's Translocation, absorbing it slowly since the material is highly technical. If nothing else, it will be educational. Thank you all for your help and encouragement. Knowledge is the ultimate gift that keeps on giving.
The mod answers:
So... If I understand correctly, you're asking whether the differences in colour / coat / etc. in mice have a background in genetics?
I have to make sure what you meant because what I think you're asking is kind of fundamental foundation in breeding mice and understanding how colours and many other things are inherited.
The answer is: Yes they do.
You should probably read Finnmouse's "colour varieties" -pages http://www.hiiret.fi/eng/breeding/varieties/index.html and then continue to Willys K. Silvers' The Coat Colors of Mice - A Model for Mammalian Gene Action and Interaction.
21 - 22 of 22 Posts
People often approach animal colourbreeding like it's a science - punnet squares and ratios and suchlike. But it's the modifiers that make it an art rather than a sciencemoustress said:And then at the far end of the subject We have seven or ten major things, the ABC's mousie genetics which also sounds so simple. There's a world of details in between. Sometimes you have to look into the details to get past the simpler stuff...like what exactly makes a mousie who is definitely champagne, genetically by the simple system, look like a dove. And then, of course there are all the other things that can alter the appearance of critters, diet, environment, etc. but al that stuff is based on genetics as well. Then there's RNA, which another great big ball 'o wax. And mtDNA. Oh, lordy, there's so much I don't know!
21 - 22 of 22 Posts
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