fossil evidence suggests that whales evolved from land mammals. using comparative dna techniques, scientists have also suggested that whales are related to hippos. how could comparing amino acid sequences support the theory of evolution?

Comparison of amino acid sequences supports the theory of evolution because through this sequence it is possible to map the genetic makeup of living things and to find evolutionary similarities between them.

Explanation:

In the past, scientists performed evolutionary analyzes comparing the physical characteristics - called phenotypes - of the species found in the fossil record. However, since the discovery of molecular resources this scenario has changed. The concept of molecular clock arose from the observation that the longer it has been since two species diverged from a common ancestor, the more different will be the sequence of their DNA or protein.

By comparing amino acid sequences or homologous proteins - in other words, sequences of two organisms with a direct common ancestor - one can measure the time since the organisms diverged. And this can be visualized in a phylogenetic tree, where it will be easy to explain how these organisms evolved.