The following phylogeny shows six living species (a-f) and five ancestral (now extinct) species (#1-5). If the phylogeny had been developed on the basis of similarities in bone structure, which of the following predictions would you make in terms of the structure of a particular enzyme?

A) The enzymes of species b and f are very similar.
B) The enzymes of species b and c are more similar to ancestor #4 than to ancestor 2
C) The enzymes of species a and b are the same as that of ancestor #2.
D) The enzyme of species c is very similar to that of species d.

Question

The following phylogeny shows six living species (a-f) and five ancestral (now extinct) species (#1-5) . If the phylogeny had been developed on the basis of similarities in bone structure, which of the following predictions would you make in terms of the structure of a particular enzyme?

A) The enzymes of species b and f are very similar. 
B) The enzymes of species b and c are more similar to ancestor #4 than to ancestor 2 
C) The enzymes of species a and b are the same as that of ancestor #2. 
D) The enzyme of species c is very similar to that of species d.

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Since the phylogeny is based on similarities in bone structure, we can assume that species with closer ancestral relationships will share more similarities in their bone structure. Therefore, we can predict that the enzymes of species b and c are more similar to ancestor #4 (the common ancestor of b and c) than to ancestor #2 (the common ancestor of a, d, e, and f).

The Following Phylogeny Shows Six Living Species (A-F) and Five