Question

Sarah Tishkoff used microsatellites to investigate variation in human populations because?

1) Microsatellites are noncoding repeated stretches of DNA that can be highly polymorphic
2) They first appeared in humans and are not found in other animals
3) They were derived from globulin genes as an extra copy
4) They evolved more slowly than other genes in the nucleus

Answer 1

Sarah Tishkoff used microsatellites to investigate variation in human populations because they are noncoding, highly polymorphic regions of DNA, making them effective genetic markers for tracking diversity and constructing genetic maps.

Step-by-step explanation:

Sarah Tishkoff used microsatellites to investigate variation in human populations primarily because microsatellites are noncoding repeated stretches of DNA that can be highly polymorphic. These sequences are suitable for assessing genetic diversity because they exhibit variation between individuals in the sequence and number of DNA repeats. While microsatellites are found in many organisms and not exclusive to humans, they have not been derived from globulin genes nor are they slow-evolving compared to other nuclear genes

. Instead, their variability makes them excellent markers for genetic studies and for constructing genetic maps which facilitate the study of evolutionary relationships and genetic diversities within and between populations.