Article
Genetics & Heredity
A. P. Kozlov
Summary: This paper introduces the theory of carcino-evo-devo, which explains the sources of additional cell masses in the evolution of multicellular organisms. Several non-trivial predictions are formulated and confirmed through experiments.
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Andrei P. Kozlov
Summary: A theory called the carcino-evo-devo theory is being developed to explain the evolutionary role of hereditary tumors. The theory proposes that hereditary tumors played a role in the evolution of multicellular organisms by providing additional cell masses for the expression of novel genes. It has made several nontrivial predictions that have been confirmed in laboratory experiments and offers explanations for previously unexplained biological phenomena. By considering individual development, evolutionary development, and neoplastic development within one framework, the carcino-evo-devo theory has the potential to become a unifying biological theory.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Sebastian S. James, Mackenzie Englund, Riley Bottom, Roberto Perez, Kathleen E. Connor, Kelly J. Huffman, Stuart P. Wilson, Leah A. Krubitzer
Summary: Advances in sequencing techniques have allowed for comparative studies of gene expression, but spatial expression has remained limited due to a lack of robust methodology. In this study, methods and software tools were developed to quantify and compare tissue-wide spatial patterns of gene expression within and between species. The expression patterns of RZR beta and Id2 mRNA in the cortex were compared across early postnatal development in mice and voles. The results showed that RZR beta expression patterns were highly conserved between species, while Id2 expression patterns emerged in a consistent manner across layers in both species. These differences in neocortical patterning development were suggested to reflect the independent evolution of brains, bodies, and sensory systems since their common ancestor 35 million years ago.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2022)
Editorial Material
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Alistair P. McGregor, Alexandra D. Buffry, Renske M. A. Vroomans
Summary: Evolutionary developmental biology is a broad field that aims to understand how developmental processes evolve and contribute to phenotypic change and organismal diversification. This special issue reviews key topics in the field, including advances in theory and methodology, as well as our latest knowledge about molecular, cellular, and organismal functionality and diversification.
ESSAYS IN BIOCHEMISTRY
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Salem al-Mosleh, Gary P. T. Choi, Arhat Abzhanov, L. Mahadevan
Summary: The study analyzed the beak morphology of Darwin's finches, finding that the curvature increases linearly from the base to the tip of the beak and is related to dietary habits. By proposing an experimentally motivated growth law and utilizing a morphospace, the study shows how a combination of geometry and dynamics allows for the development and evolution of functional form in the finches.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2021)
Review
Biology
Daisuke Koyabu
Summary: Over the past decade, studies combining palaeontology, embryology, and experimental developmental biology have significantly changed our understanding of the homology of the mammalian skull. New evidence suggests the need to revisit and restructure the conventional anatomical terminology used for the components of the mammalian skull, which has been a longstanding unresolved issue since the nineteenth century. This review highlights the overlooked problems related to homology, development, and conservatism of the mammalian skull, with a call for future studies in these areas.
PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
(2023)
Review
Biology
Tomasz Skawinski, Piotr Kuziak, Janusz Kloskowski, Bartosz Borczyk
Summary: The development of the vertebral column in birds, specifically the ossification patterns in the neck and thoracic vertebrae, remains largely unknown, with ancestral presence of two different ossification sites. While studies on Neoaves are limited, evidence from pigeons and grebes support the ancestral presence of two ossification loci in birds. Despite decades of research, the skeletal development in birds, including the vertebral column, is still not completely understood.
Article
Plant Sciences
Beatrice Albert, Alexis Matamoro-Vidal, Charlotte Prieu, Sophie Nadot, Irene Till-Bottraud, Adrienne Ressayre, Pierre-Henri Gouyon
Summary: The diversity of pollen grain forms in flowering plants is determined by the developmental mechanisms involved in establishing pollen morphological features. Aperture pattern, characterized by aperture number, structure, and position, is determined during microsporogenesis, and plays a key role in plant reproduction. Advances in understanding aperture pattern development shed light on the evolution of aperture pattern in angiosperms.
Article
Cell Biology
Kai Ito, Vuong Tan Tu, Thomas P. Eiting, Taro Nojiri, Daisuke Koyabu
Summary: The homologies of bat nasal turbinals have been disputed, but tracing prenatal development may provide a solution. Bat turbinate structures are similar to laurasiatherians, indicating bats retain the ancestral condition, while the absence of certain structures in specific bat groups may have occurred through convergent evolution.
FRONTIERS IN CELL AND DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Alessandro Cavallo, Melody S. Clark, Lloyd S. Peck, Elizabeth M. Harper, Victoria A. Sleight
Summary: By studying shell development in the Antarctic clam, researchers found that the formation of the larval shell involves development-specific downstream effector genes, while the adult shell secretion processes use different genes. This suggests that the formation of the larval shell is a conserved and ancestral feature in molluscs.
ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Christine Hirschberger, Victoria A. Sleight, Katharine E. Criswell, Stephen J. Clark, J. Andrew Gillis
Summary: The study reveals broad conservation of dorsoventral patterning mechanisms within the developing mandibular, hyoid, and gill arches of a cartilaginous fish, the skate. It also highlights differences in notch signaling between mandibular and gill arches in skate. Comparative transcriptomic analyses show additional genes differentially expressed along the DV axis of the pharyngeal arches.
MOLECULAR BIOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2021)
Article
Biology
Melanie J. Hopkins, Rebecca To
Summary: This study analyzes over 1500 species of trilobites and reveals long-term shifts in segment number and allocation, which cannot be explained by taxonomic turnover or trends in functionally relevant behavior.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
(2022)
Article
Psychology, Multidisciplinary
Laura Nuno de la Rosa, Mihaela Pavlicev, Arantza Etxeberria
Summary: Critiques of the container model and the emergence of new perspectives have led to a reevaluation of the concept of pregnancy as an evolved relational novelty. The idea of historical individuality, as opposed to other views of biological individuality, offers a fresh insight into pregnancy and may help dispel misconceptions.
FRONTIERS IN PSYCHOLOGY
(2021)
Review
Biology
Long Zhao, Feng Gao, Shan Gao, Yujun Liang, Hongan Long, Zhiyi Lv, Ying Su, Naihao Ye, Liusuo Zhang, Chengtian Zhao, Xiaoyu Wang, Weibo Song, Shicui Zhang, Bo Dong
Summary: Evo-Devo seeks to understand how developmental changes impact organismal evolution, but current model organisms may not be sufficient to cover the vast biodiversity on Earth.
SCIENCE CHINA-LIFE SCIENCES
(2021)
Review
Biology
Urs Schmidt-Ott, Chun Wai Kwan
Summary: This article compares the development and functions of extraembryonic tissue in Drosophila and Megaselia, finding that the amnioserosa combines components and functions from both serosa and amnion development. This raises the question of whether merging tissue-specific gene networks is a common evolutionary process.
PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
(2022)
