Understanding Evo-Devo

Erscheinungsjahr 2021
ISBN: 978-1-108-81946-6
Verlag: Cambridge University Pr.

Buch, Englisch, 150 Seiten, Format (B × H): 122 mm x 177 mm, Gewicht: 238 g

Reihe: Understanding Life

Why do the best-known examples of evolutionary change involve the alteration of one kind of animal into another very similar one, like the evolution of a bigger beak in a bird? Wouldn't it be much more interesting to understand how beaks originated? Most people would agree, but until recently we didn't know much about such origins. That is now changing, with the growth of the interdisciplinary field evo-devo, which deals with the relationship between how embryos develop in the short term and how they (and the adults they grow into) evolve in the long term. One of the key questions is: can the origins of structures such as beaks, eyes, and shells be explained within a Darwinian framework? The answer seems to be yes, but only by expanding that framework. This book discusses the required expansion, and the current state of play regarding our understanding of evolutionary and developmental origins.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Arthur, Wallace

Fachgebiete

• Naturwissenschaften Biowissenschaften Biowissenschaften Genetik und Genomik (nichtmedizinisch)
• Naturwissenschaften Biowissenschaften Zellbiologie
• Naturwissenschaften Biowissenschaften Entwicklungsbiologie
• Naturwissenschaften Biowissenschaften Biowissenschaften Evolutionsbiologie
• Interdisziplinäres Wissenschaften Wissenschaften: Allgemeines Geschichte der Naturwissenschaften, Formalen Wissenschaften & Technik
• Geisteswissenschaften Geschichtswissenschaft Geschichtliche Themen Wissenschafts- und Universitätsgeschichte
• Naturwissenschaften Biowissenschaften Molekularbiologie
• Geisteswissenschaften Philosophie Wissenschaftstheorie, Wissenschaftsphilosophie

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Preface; Acknowledgements; 1. What is evo-devo and why is it important?; 2. Antecedents of evo-devo; 3. Evolutionary and developmental essentials; 4. Evo-devo essentials; 5. The evolution of variations on a theme; 6. The evolutionary origins of themes and novelties; 7. The evolutionary origins of body plans; 8. Body plan features and toolkit genes; 9. Bringing it all together; Concluding remarks; Summary of common misunderstandings; References; Index.

Über Autor(innen)

Arthur, Wallace
Wallace Arthur was one of the founders of the interdisciplinary field of evo-devo (evolutionary developmental biology) in the 1980s. He was a founding editor of the journal Evolution and Development. His interests are focused on the evolutionary origins of novel types of animal, and how these origins may differ from 'routine evolution'.