Our Animal DNA
Image credit: Mark Danson / Wellcome Connecting Science
Use bioinformatic tools to compare different genes across the tree of life.
Explore the tree of life using different bioinformatic tools in this two part practical activity. In Practical 1, learners will use the Ensembl database to find a specific protein sequence and run a BLAST to find out similarities between proteins found in humans to those found in other species. In Practical 2, learners will use their sequences from Practical 1 to align them to create a phylogenetic tree using an alignment programme called Clustal Omega.
Follow the steps for each practical in the corresponding instruction guides below.