Biologists Identify Molecular Basis of High-Altitude Adaptation in Mice

Biologists have long known how adaptive evolution works. New mutations arise within a population and those that confer some benefits to the organism increase in frequency and eventually become fixed in the population.

A significant challenge for evolutionary biologists, however, has been to identify the specific mutations that are responsible for adaptive change. But new research by an international team led by Jay Storz of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln has succeeded in identifying the specific gene mutations that have allowed deer mice to migrate from grasslands at relatively low elevations to low-oxygen alpine peaks. more...