Molecular Dissection of Allometry, Ontogeny, and Plasticity: A Genomic View of Developmental Biology

Abstract

Allometric power scaling, ontogenetic growth, and phenotypic plasticity represent three fundamental developmental features for every living organism. To analyze these three features of an organism at the interface between development and evolution, researchers must understand their underlying genetic bases. We have developed a general framework for deciphering the genetic machinery that guides allometric scaling, ontogenetic growth, and environment-dependent plasticity in biological organisms. This approach constitutes a step toward creating a unified view of evolutionary biology and developmental biology ("evo-devo").