Gene_order
Gene order is the permutation of genome arrangement. A fair amount of research has been done trying to determine whether gene orders evolve according to a molecular clock (molecular clock hypothesis) or in jumps (punctuated equilibrium). By comparing gene orders in dissimilar organisms, scientists are able to develop a molecular phylogeny tree.[1] When organisms have similar gene orders, meaning they have likely diverged recently, it is called synteny.
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Some research on gene orders in animals' mitochondrial genomes reveal that the mutation rate of gene orders is not a constant in some degrees.[2]
Methods for genome mapping, determining the gene order, include:[3][4]
- Radiation hybrid mapping
- Genetic linkage mapping (recombinant frequency)
- Fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH)
- Restriction mapping
- Sequence-tagged site content mapping
- Southern hybridization
- PCR
All of these methods can lead to a gene sequence or a DNA sequence by which genes can be identified and compared.