Frederick Nijhout and Yuichiro Suzuki, both biologists from Duke University used the pressure of selection to alter tobacco hornworms genetically. They allowed them to develop a trait which allowed them to turn black or green. They discovered the color trait was affected by the temperature the hornworms were in during development.
This article is an example of discovery science because the two biologists discovered that by altering the environment in which hornworms were developed they could greatly alter genetic traits.
It was an important finding to discover that the genetic makeup of an organism greatly depends on the environment in which it was developed, and that complex traits composed of many genes can "blossom" in the evolution of an organism.
Source: Biology News (biologynews.net)
Title of Article: Researchers evolve a complex genetic trait in the laboratory.
Date Published: February 3, 2006.
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