Search results for "Biological Evolution"
showing 10 items of 522 documents
The ecogenetic link between demography and evolution: can we bridge the gap between theory and data?
2007
Calls to understand the links between ecology and evolution have been common for decades. Population dynamics, i.e. the demographic changes in populations, arise from life history decisions of individuals and thus are a product of selection, and selection, on the contrary, can be modified by such dynamical properties of the population as density and stability. It follows that generating predictions and testing them correctly requires considering this ecogenetic feedback loop whenever traits have demographic consequences, mediated via density dependence (or frequency dependence). This is not an easy challenge, and arguably theory has advanced at a greater pace than empirical research. Howeve…
Biodiversity is not (and never has been) a bed of roses!
2011
9 pages; International audience; Over the last decades, the critical study of fossil diversity has led to significant advances in the knowledge of global macroevolutionary patterns of biodiversity. The deep-time history of life on Earth results from background originations and extinctions defining a steady-state, nonstationary equilibrium occasionally perturbed by biotic crises and "explosive" diversifications. More recently, a macroecological approach to the large-scale distribution of extant biodiversity offered new, stimulating perspectives on old theoretical questions and current practical problems in conservation biology. However, time and space are practically distinct, but functional…
Allometric space and allometric disparity: a developmental perspective in the macroevolutionary analysis of morphological disparity.
2008
8 pages; International audience; Here, we advance novel uses of allometric spaces--multidimensional spaces specifically defined by allometric coefficients--with the goal of investigating the focal role of development in shaping the evolution of morphological disparity. From their examination, operational measures of allometric disparity can be derived, complementing standard signals of morphological disparity through an intuitive and process-oriented refinement of established analytical protocols used in disparity studies. Allometric spaces thereby become a promising context to reveal different patterns of evolutionary developmental changes and to assess their relative prevalence and import…
Biomechanical insights into the dentition of megatooth sharks (Lamniformes: Otodontidae)
2021
AbstractThe evolution of gigantism in extinct otodontid sharks was paralleled by a series of drastic modifications in their dentition including widening of the crowns, loss of lateral cusplets, and acquisition of serrated cutting edges. These traits have generally been interpreted as key functional features that enabled the transition from piscivory to more energetic diets based on marine mammals, ultimately leading to the evolution of titanic body sizes in the most recent forms (including the emblematic Otodus megalodon). To investigate this hypothesis, we evaluate the biomechanics of the anterior, lateral, and posterior teeth of five otodontid species under different loading conditions by…
Feeding biomechanics of Late Triassic metoposaurids (Amphibia: Temnospondyli): a 3D finite element analysis approach
2017
The Late Triassic freshwater ecosystems were occupied by different tetrapod groups including large-sized anamniotes, such as metoposaurids. Most members of this group of temnospondyls acquired gigantic sizes (up to 5 m long) with a nearly worldwide distribution. The paleoecology of metoposaurids is controversial; they have been historically considered passive, bottom-dwelling animals, waiting for prey on the bottom of rivers and lakes, or they have been suggested to be active mid-water feeders. The present study aims to expand upon the paleoecological interpretations of these animals using 3D finite element analyses (FEA). Skulls from two taxa, Metoposaurus krasiejowensis, a gigantic taxon …
Functional assessment of morphological homoplasy in stem-gnathostomes
2021
Osteostraci and Galeaspida are stem-gnathostomes, occupying a key phylogenetic position for resolving the nature of the jawless ancestor from which jawed vertebrates evolved more than 400 million years ago. Both groups are characterized by the presence of rigid headshields that share a number of common morphological traits, in some cases hindering the resolution of their interrelationships and the exact nature of their affinities with jawed vertebrates. Here, we explore the morphological and functional diversity of osteostracan and galeaspid headshields using an innovative approach that combines geometric morphometrics and computational fluid dynamics, thereby constraining the underlying fa…
Linking species habitat and past palaeoclimatic events to evolution of the teleost innate immune system
2017
Host-intrinsic factors as well as environmental changes are known to be strong evolutionary drivers defining the genetic foundation of immunity. Using a novel set of teleost genomes and a time-calibrated phylogeny, we here investigate the family of Toll-like receptor ( TLR ) genes and address the underlying evolutionary processes shaping the diversity of the first-line defence. Our findings reveal remarkable flexibility within the evolutionary design of teleost innate immunity characterized by prominent TLR gene losses and expansions. In the order of Gadiformes, expansions correlate with the loss of major histocompatibility complex class II ( MHCII ) and diversifying selection analyses sup…
How do cuticular hydrocarbons evolve? Physiological constraints and climatic and biotic selection pressures act on a complex functional trait
2017
Cuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs) cover the cuticles of virtually all insects, serving as a waterproofing agent and as a communication signal. The causes for the high CHC variation between species, and the factors influencing CHC profiles, are scarcely understood. Here, we compare CHC profiles of ant species from seven biogeographic regions, searching for physiological constraints and for climatic and biotic selection pressures. Molecule length constrained CHC composition: long-chain profiles contained fewer linear alkanes, but more hydrocarbons with disruptive features in the molecule. This is probably owing to selection on the physiology to build a semi-fluid cuticular layer, which is necessa…
Quantitative genetics of temperature performance curves of Neurospora crassa
2020
AbstractEarth’s temperature is increasing due to anthropogenic CO2emissions; and organisms need either to adapt to higher temperatures, migrate into colder areas, or face extinction. Temperature affects nearly all aspects of an organism’s physiology via its influence on metabolic rate and protein structure, therefore genetic adaptation to increased temperature may be much harder to achieve compared to other abiotic stresses. There is still much to be learned about the evolutionary potential for adaptation to higher temperatures, therefore we studied the quantitative genetics of growth rates in different temperatures that make up the thermal performance curve of the fungal model systemNeuros…
Realistic genetic architecture enables organismal adaptation as predicted under the folk definition of inclusive fitness
2021
A fundamental task of evolutionary biology is to explain the pervasive impression of organismal design in nature, including traits benefiting kin. Inclusive fitness is considered by many to be a crucial piece in this puzzle, despite ongoing discussion about its scope and limitations. Here, we use individual-based simulations to study what quantity (if any) individual organisms become adapted to maximize when genetic architectures are more or less suitable for the presumed main driver of biological adaptation, namely cumulative multi-locus evolution. As an expository device, we focus on a hypothetical situation called Charlesworth's paradox, in which altruism is seemingly predicted to evolve…