A cladogram shows the evolutionary relationship between humans, chimpanzees, and gorillas. The cladogram currently shows humans and chimpanzees with a more recent common ancestor compared to gorillas. Which piece of evidence, if true, would most likely weaken this hypothesis?(1 point)

Question

Responses

The cells of the eye in embryos of gorillas and humans follow a similar pattern of development while chimpanzee embryos are different.
The cells of the eye in embryos of gorillas and humans follow a similar pattern of development while chimpanzee embryos are different.

Amino acid analysis of the cytochrome c protein shows significant differences in the sequence of amino acids between humans and gorillas.
Amino acid analysis of the cytochrome c protein shows significant differences in the sequence of amino acids between humans and gorillas.

DNA sequence analysis of the hemoglobin alpha gene shows that humans and chimpanzees have a more similar sequence to each other than they do to the gorilla’s DNA sequence.
DNA sequence analysis of the hemoglobin alpha gene shows that humans and chimpanzees have a more similar sequence to each other than they do to the gorilla’s DNA sequence.

Fossils of humans appear in deeper sedimentary rock layers compared to fossils of chimpanzees.

Answer 1

The piece of evidence that would most likely weaken the hypothesis that humans and chimpanzees share a more recent common ancestor compared to gorillas is:

Amino acid analysis of the cytochrome c protein shows significant differences in the sequence of amino acids between humans and gorillas.

This evidence suggests that there may be a greater evolutionary distance between humans and gorillas than between humans and chimpanzees, potentially indicating that the common ancestor of humans and chimpanzees may not be as recent as currently thought. Therefore, it challenges the relative closeness of the relationship proposed in the cladogram.