1 Chapter 1 DNA, Genes, Genomes and Plant Breeding 1.1. A Brief History of Genetics To many people, the beginnings of genetics can be traced back to the pub- lication in 1859 of Charles Darwin’s book, ‘On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection’. This established the theory of evolution based on the principle of natural selection, discovered independently at the same time by Alfred Russell Wallace, and was the culmination of dec- ades spent collecting and examining evidence. Darwin argued that species and individuals within species compete with each other. Furthermore, individuals within a species are not all the same; they differ, or show variation. Those that are best fitted for their environment are the most likely to survive, reproduce and pass on their characteristics to the next generation. If the environment changes or a spe- cies colonises a new environment, different characteristics may be selected for, leading to change or evolution. The diversity of life on Earth could therefore be explained by the adaptation of species and groups of individuals within species to different and changing environments, lead- ing to the extinction of some species and the appearance of others. Species that were similar had arisen from a recent common ancestor. Most contro- versially, humans were similar to other apes not because God had made it Crop Biotechnology Downloaded from www.worldscientific.com by 14.165.90.143 on 06/29/23. Re-use and distribution is strictly not permitted, except for Open Access articles.
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