Model organism facts for kids
A model organism is a non-human living thing that scientists study very closely. They learn a lot about it over many years.
The main goal is to understand basic things about life. Scientists hope that what they learn from a model organism will help them understand how other living things work, including humans.
For example, model organisms are often used to study human diseases. This is because it's not always possible or right to experiment on people. Studying a model organism can give clues about how to find causes and treatments for diseases. This works because all living things are related and share many similar ways of working, like how their bodies grow and use energy.
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Why Scientists Study Model Organisms
Scientists choose model organisms for many reasons. These organisms often grow quickly, are easy to keep in a lab, and have a short life cycle. This means scientists can study many generations in a short time. Also, many model organisms share similar genes and biological processes with humans, making them useful for understanding human health and diseases.
Famous Model Organisms in Genetics
Genetics is the study of genes and heredity. Some model organisms have been key to understanding how genes work.
Drosophila melanogaster: The Fruit Fly
The Drosophila melanogaster, or fruit fly, was one of the first animals used to study genetics. Today, it is one of the most well-known and studied eukaryotic organisms (organisms whose cells have a nucleus).
All living things use similar ways to handle their genes. So, understanding how genes are copied and used in fruit flies helps scientists understand these processes in other eukaryotes, like humans.
Studies on fruit flies helped prove that genes are located on chromosomes. Early research by Alfred Sturtevant even created the first maps showing where genes are found on Drosophila chromosomes.
The fruit fly's full set of genes, called its genome, was completely mapped out in 2000. Because so much is known about how it develops from an egg to a larva and then to an adult, it's a key model for developmental genetics. This field studies how living things grow and develop. For example, the important hox genes, which control how animals develop body parts, were first discovered in Drosophila.
Escherichia coli: The E. coli Bacterium
Escherichia coli, often called E. coli, is a type of bacterium. In 1946, scientists Joshua Lederberg and Edward Tatum used E. coli to describe how bacteria can share genetic material.
E. coli was also very important in early experiments to understand viruses that infect bacteria. Scientists like Seymour Benzer used E. coli to figure out the structure of genes. Before his work, no one knew if genes were like a straight line or had branches.
E. coli was one of the first organisms to have its entire genome sequenced. Its complete genetic map was published in 1997.
Since 1988, scientist Richard Lenski has been using E. coli in long-term experiments to watch evolution happen in the lab. This has allowed direct observation of big evolutionary changes.
Other Important Model Organisms
Many other organisms are used as models in different areas of science:
- Viruses
* Phage Lamda * Tobacco Mosaic Virus
- Protists (tiny, single-celled organisms)
* Emiliana huxlei: A type of alga that is studied as a model for tiny ocean plants called phytoplankton. * Chlamydomonas reinhardtii
- Fungi
* Aspergillus nidulans * Neurospora crassa
- Plants
* Arabidopsis thalliana (a small flowering plant) * Zea mays (corn) * Pisum sativum (pea plant)
- Animals
* Caenorhabditis elegans (a tiny worm called a nematode) * Tribolium castaneum (a flour beetle) * Mus musculus (the mouse) * Rattus norvegicus (the Norwegian rat)
Images for kids
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Saccharomyces cerevisiae, a type of yeast, is one of the most studied eukaryotic model organisms in molecular and cell biology.
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Laboratory mice are widely used in medical research.
See also
In Spanish: Organismo modelo para niños
