Scattered across every genome are short stretches of DNA that repeat themselves, over and over, with no obvious job. It turns out those repeats are precise enough to trace how closely related two species really are.
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Microsatellite DNA
Short repeats, big evolutionary clues
WhatShort, tandem-repeating DNA sequences
Main UseStudying evolutionary relationships among species
Also Used InPopulation genetics, conservation, fingerprinting
Not ForStem cells, cloning plants, or drug trials
Q70 answer: (a) Studying the evolutionary relationships among various species of fauna.
🏛️ Must Know
What Microsatellite DNA Is
- Repeating Sequences Microsatellites are short DNA sequences (1–4 base-pair units) that repeat in tandem, scattered throughout the genomes of most eukaryotic species.
- Studying Evolution Microsatellite DNA is used in the case of studying evolutionary relationships among various species of fauna — comparing repeat patterns helps researchers construct phylogenetic trees and trace ancestry.
- Highly Variable Microsatellites are highly polymorphic (variable between individuals), which makes them especially useful genetic markers — more so than many other DNA regions.
- Codominant Inheritance They are codominant and follow simple Mendelian inheritance, both properties that make them easy to interpret in genetic studies.
🏘️ Good to Know
Wider Applications
- Population Genetics Beyond evolutionary studies, microsatellites are widely used in population genetics, conservation biology, and fisheries management to study genetic diversity and population structure.
- Fingerprinting Their variability also supports genetic fingerprinting and pedigree analysis, similar in principle to how DNA fingerprinting is used in forensics and paternity testing.
- Limits With Distance Microsatellite comparisons work best between closely related species — their usefulness for tracing relationships breaks down as evolutionary distance between species increases.
- Not for Stem Cells or Trials Microsatellite DNA is not used for stimulating stem-cell differentiation, plant clonal propagation, or drug-trial efficacy assessment — each of those uses different, unrelated techniques.
Test Yourself
📝 Previous Year Question
UPSC CSP 2023 — Microsatellite DNA Usage
- UPSC 2023 Microsatellite DNA is used in the case of studying the evolutionary relationships among various species of fauna. See UPSC CSP 2023 GS Paper I, Q70.
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