a question for Genes for Life

[spinoza99]

Genes,

I'm reading Sean Carroll's the Making of the Fittest. In it he says that the Opsin genes have 15 different amino acids between certain species, but then he says on another page that there are only 3 differences. Which is it 15 or 3?

[Animavore]

what exactly does it say? could you type out the two pragraphs?

[spinoza99]

what exactly does it say? could you type out the two pragraphs?

see attachments, pic 2 is before pic 1

[spinoza99]

maybe he means 15 amino acid differences on 3 sites.

[Animavore]

they seem to be saying that 3 sites out of the 15 account for most of the difference, i assume the other amino acid differences have little effect.

[GenesForLife]

There are 15 amino acid sites which vary between the two proteins, and the functional difference between the red and green opsins (in terms of absorption peaks) results from variations at 3 of these variable sites.

[Animavore]

's what I said

[spinoza99]

thanks, you two are the bomb