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POTENTIAL RED HERRINGS. "While the underlying genetic networks are often conserved across plant lineages, genes identified to be important in the regulation of phenotypic changes for wildtype and mutant plants in model species may not translate into the types of genetic and phenotypic changes that are selected upon and affect survival and reproductive fitness under natural environmental conditions." https://lnkd.in/dD4GcAS View in LinkedIn

WHY DNA? "A major question is why was DNA selected to replace RNA? The traditional explanation is that DNA replaced RNA as genetic material because it is more stable and can be repaired more faithfully." https://lnkd.in/dNTbYMw View in LinkedIn

SO ENDS the first weekend on evo-devo as an idea. The evolution and development of symmetry in the snapdragon is a topic that has engaged some of our brightest minds. Such focus and attention to the smallest details of a fragment of nature is not only a marvelous luxury but also permits a portal into the greater inner workings of life on planet earth. We are enriched by such scholarship. View in LinkedIn

MORE COMPLEX THAN JUST CANDIDATE GENES. "In many cases, differential copy numbers of the genes involved in the networks may contribute to a shift in timing or placement of gene expression, resulting in novelty in form. Thus, both regulatory changes as well as novel or altered DNA binding and/or protein interactions (i.e. coding changes) must be investigated." https://lnkd.in/dD4GcAS View in LinkedIn

GENE NETWORKS FOR ADAPTATION. "In order to study the genetics of adaptation in floral form, the full developmental networks underlying organ morphology must be determined for the lineage under study. Using a comparative approach among related species or within polymorphic populations, mutation(s) causing an observed change in gene expression or alterations in protein interactions can be identified." https://lnkd.in/dD4GcAS View in LinkedIn

UNDERLYING NUANCES. "Differential expression and interactions of the network genes can underlie symmetry differences among flowers by influencing characters such as petal shape, stamen growth and cell type differentiation within flowers and lineage-specific changes in copy numbers of these genes, each copy having the potential to acquire mutations in regulatory or coding regions, provide opportunities for novel developmental and morphological consequences." https://lnkd.in/dD4GcAS View in LinkedIn

CANCER represents a very bizarre cellular dysfunction, where a part of the body decides to rebel, to acquire genes in order to speed that rebellion, and increasingly acts like an autonomous cellular organization with an enormously high mutation rate. View in LinkedIn

SOME VIRUSES do cause diseases, but the most interesting examples are in oncology. While the focus of this thread is not to pathologize viruses, their role in cancer is rather remarkable. Other viral diseases are also very interesting. View in LinkedIn

MITOCHONDRIAL ORIGINS. "It is noteworthy that such a global replacement of cellular proteins by viral-encoded functional analogs actually occurred in the course of mitochondial evolution." https://lnkd.in/dNTbYMw View in LinkedIn

VIRAL DNA IN HUMAN GENOME. "Human endogenous retrovirus (HERV) proviruses comprise a significant part of the human genome, with approximately 98,000 ERV elements and fragments making up nearly 8%." Some infected human genomes at least 150,000 years ago. https://lnkd.in/dwG2wT9 View in LinkedIn