Researching Evolutionary Development

(Evo Devo)

Ciera Martinez, PhD

UC Berkeley

The study of comparing species to understand how developmental processes evolve. 

Evo Devo

Did these structures originate from a common ancestor? i.e.

For example:

Homologous

How do you determine if

structures are homologous?

development the same

look the same

have same relation to other features

source: evolution.berkeley.edu

Then you can map features on a phylogenetic tree to understand the evolutionary history of any organism

Alternatively, structures

may look the same AND function the same, but are not derived from the same ancestral structure. These structures are

analogous.

Source: evolution.about.com

So if your interested in insect wing evolution, you look at only insects.

 

Source: From DNA to Diversity. Carrol and Weatherbee.

Do these organisms use the same genetic toolbox to achieve the same shape?

Genetic Toolbox 

Genetic material that directs development.

Modern Molecular Evo Devo researchers ask:

How do we know if organisms use the same genetic toolbox to build similar looking structures?

1. The genes look the same

2. The genes act the same

 

How do we know if they are the same genes? 

- The genes look the same.

Source: Ronshaugen et al., 2002

How do we know if they are the same genes? 

- The genes act the same.

Source: From DNA to Diversity. Carrol and Weatherbee.

Most exciting: Sometimes genes that look the same, make very different structures when you zoom out on the phylogenetic tree.

 

For example, you can ask: Does this Ubx gene exist in mammals? If yes, how does it act? If no, do they share genes that function similarly?

Source: From Pang and Thompson. 2011.

Evo Devo research spans different time scales.

Evolutionary Time

Source: From coast.noaa.gov

Developmental Time

By: Michael Richardson

Then compares across species

Scientific Method

1. Observation

2. Question

3. Research

4. Hypothesis

5. Experiment 

6. Data 

7. Conclusion

Observation: Woa. That is weird/beautiful.

Question: WTF? How did that come to exist? Why is it like that?

Research: Has anyone else ever noticed this? What did they do? 

Hypothesis: If I compare this species and this species, I will understand how that weird/beautiful thing evolved.

 

 

 

 

 

How the scientific method for evo devo researchers (like me)

 

($$$:  Please give me money I am now obsessed and will spend it wisely.)

 

Experiment: Measure. Observe. Measure, Observe. Listen to music.  Measure.

Data: Organize. Program. Make pretty graphs. Repeat.

Conclusion: Hypothesis supported/rejected and I have a thousand more questions.  Can I please keep researching this?

How I became an evo devo Researcher?

 

I love form, design, and function

Evo Devo research I have been fortunate to be part of...

Evolution of Wood

Source: Du et al., 2011, Spicer and Groover 2010.

Evolution of flower symmetry

Source: Preston, Martinez, Hileman. 2013.

How do leaves evolve?

Source: Martinez, unpublished.

Me Now:

I study how a fly embryo becomes a fly across 50 closely related species.  But not looks at single genes, but whole genomes.

Evo Devo

By Ciera Martinez

Evo Devo

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