Abstract:
Major changes in the vertebrate anatomy have preceded the conquest of land by the members of this taxon, and continuous changes in limb shape and use have occurred during the later radiation of tetrapods. While the main, conserved mechanisms of limb development have been discerned over the past century using a combination of classical embryological and molecular methods, only recent advances made it possible to identify and study the regulatory changes that have contributed to the evolution of the tetrapod appendage. These advances include the expansion of the model repertoire from traditional genetic model species to non-conventional ones, a proliferation of predictive mathematical models that describe gene interactions, an explosion in genomic data and the development of high-throughput methodologies. These revolutionary innovations make it possible to identify specific mutations that are behind specific transitions in limb evolution. Also, as we continue to apply them to more and more extant species, we can expect to gain a fine-grained view of this evolutionary transition that has been so consequential for our species as well.
摘要:
在这个分类单元的成员征服土地之前,脊椎动物解剖结构发生了重大变化,在四足动物的后期辐射过程中,肢体形状和用途发生了连续变化。虽然主要,在过去的一个世纪中,使用经典的胚胎学和分子方法的组合已经发现了肢体发育的保守机制,只有最近的进展才有可能识别和研究促进四足动物附属物进化的调控变化。这些进展包括将模型库从传统遗传模型物种扩展到非常规物种,描述基因相互作用的预测性数学模型的激增,基因组数据的爆炸式增长和高通量方法的发展。这些革命性的创新使得识别肢体进化中特定转变背后的特定突变成为可能。此外,随着我们继续将它们应用于越来越多的现存物种,我们可以期待对这种进化转变有一个细粒度的看法,这对我们的物种也是如此重要。