Modeling the Regulatory Switches of the Pitx1 Gene in Stickleback Fish

This hands-on activity supports concepts covered in the film Evolving Switches, Evolving Bodies about the evolution of stickleback fish. Students interpret molecular diagrams and build physical models of eukaryotic gene regulation.

Students review eukaryotic gene transcription using the example of a gene called Pitx1, which is involved in the development of pelvic spines in stickleback fish. They explore how changes in Pitx1 gene expression can affect body development, and learn how those changes, with the appropriate selective pressure, play a role in the evolution of a population. They will then create models showing how Pitx1 gene transcription is regulated in two morphologically different populations of stickleback fish.

The “Resource Google Folder” link directs to a Google Drive folder of resource documents in the Google Docs format. Not all downloadable documents for the resource may be available in this format. The Google Drive folder is set as “View Only”; to save a copy of a document in this folder to your Google Drive, open that document, then select File → “Make a copy.” These documents can be copied, modified, and distributed online following the Terms of Use listed in the “Details” section below, including crediting BioInteractive.