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Stuart A Newman
Articles written in Journal of Biosciences
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Volume 27 Issue 2 March 2002 pp 97-104 Perspectives
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Volume 39 Issue 2 April 2014 pp 211-223 Articles
Limb, tooth, beak: Three modes of development and evolutionary innovation of form
Marta Linde-Medina Stuart A Newman
The standard model of evolutionary change of form, deriving from Darwin’s theory via the Modern Synthesis, assumes a gradualistic reshaping of anatomical structures, with major changes only occurring by many cycles of natural selection for marginal adaptive advantage. This model, with its assertion that a single mechanism underlies both micro- and macroevolutionary change, contains an implicit notion of development which is only applicable in some cases. Here we compare the embryological processes that shape the vertebrate limb bud, the mammalian tooth and the avian beak. The implied notion of development in the standard evolutionary picture is met only in the case of the vertebrate limb, a single-primordium organ with morphostatic shaping, in which cells rearrange in response to signalling centres which are essentially unchanged by cell movement. In the case of the tooth, a single-primordium organ with morphodynamic shaping in which the strengths and relationships between signalling centres is influenced by the cell and tissue movements they induce, and the beak, in which the final form is influenced by the collision and rearrangement of multiple tissue primordia, abrupt appearance of qualitatively different forms (i.e. morphological novelties) can occur with small changes in system parameters induced by a genetic change, or by an environmental factor whose effects can be subsequently canalized genetically. Bringing developmental mechanisms and, specifically, the material properties of tissues as excitable media into the evolutionary picture, demonstrates that gradualistic change for incremental adaptive advantage is only one of the possible modes of morphological evolution.
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Journal of Biosciences
Volume 48, 2023
All articles
Continuous Article Publishing mode
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Journal of Biosciences | News
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To trigger further research on plant mitochondria, the Journal of Biosciences is bringing out a special issue titled "Plant Mitochondria: Properties and Interactions with Other Organelles".
Plant mitochondria are quite distinct and have unique features, such as a cyanide-insensitive alternate pathway. They also interact with chloroplasts to optimize photosynthetic carbon assimilation.
Submissions are welcome until 30 July 2023. The contributions can be original articles, short communications, reviews, or mini-reviews on any topic related to plant mitochondria.
Authors can submit their articles online at https://www.editorialmanager.com/jbsc/default2.aspx
Posted on April 12, 2023< -
Editorial Note on Continuous Article Publication
Posted on July 25, 2019Click here for Editorial Note on CAP Mode
Forthcoming Special issue.
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