Over the past 40 or so years the field of molecular genetics has made a very significant
contribution to our understanding in many areas of biology including: systematics,
population genetics and conservation biology. By examining the genetic variation
within and among individuals, populations or species researchers can obtain crucial
information about any particular organism, or group of organisms, which may otherwise
not have been available given more classical approaches. Since those early days, many
different techniques have been developed (and are continuing to be developed) that can
help us find and describe levels of genetic variation. Perhaps the most significant of
these early techniques was protein electrophoresis.