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KEY ANCHOR. "Phenotypes, i.e., observable traits above the molecular level, such as anatomy and behavior, underlie, and indeed drive, much of the research in the life sciences. For example, they remain the primary data we use to define most species and to understand their phylogenetic history. Phenotype data are also used to recognize, define, and diagnose pathological conditions in plants, animals, and other organisms. As such, these data represent much of what we know of life and are, in fact, necessary for building a comprehensive tree of life." https://lnkd.in/dt3RBQi View in LinkedIn

PHENOTYPE. "The concept of phenotype, which corresponds to the observable attributes of an individual, was coined in opposition to the genotype, the inherited material transmitted by gametes." https://lnkd.in/d3vzXnd View in LinkedIn

CONVERSION OF GENOTYPE TO PHENOTYPE. "As explained by François Jacob (1982), “It is during embryonic development that the instructions contained in the genetic program of an organism are expressed, that the genotype is converted into phenotype. It is mainly the requirements of embryonic development that, among all possible changes in phenotype, screen the actual phenotypes” https://lnkd.in/dwgyrT4 View in LinkedIn

AMALGAMATED VIEW. "A more realistic picture of genetic networks will emerge from combining the perspectives of molecular and developmental genetics with those of population and evolutionary genetics." https://lnkd.in/duMqB2A View in LinkedIn

FRAGMENT FROM NATURE contemplates the question of the relationship of genotype to phenotype; many of us consider this to be a direct relationship. But it turns out to be less clear. The view that genes are the all-powerful factors that determine phenotype has been shockingly undermined with new thinking in recent years, in ways unimaginable 50 years ago. Entwined into this have been semantic assumptions that confounded a clearer view: namely, that the parts alone cannot do much, but it is the contextual sum of the parts that make organisms what they are. White Swan: obvious with hindsight, perhaps. View in LinkedIn

NEW THINK. "An unavoidable reality of current genetic research is that even apparently critical components of important and highly conserved pathways, governing what are known to be essential processes, can be disrupted in some strain backgrounds with what seem to be minimal phenotypic consequences." https://lnkd.in/duMqB2A View in LinkedIn

COMMON DRAMATIC CHANGES. "In contrast to earlier work emphasizing the importance of enhancer evolution and subtle sequence changes at promoters, we show that dramatic changes such as the complete gain and loss (collectively turnover) of functional promoters are common." http://genome.cshlp.org/content/early/2015/07/30/gr.190546.115 View in LinkedIn

OLD THINK. "The powerful one gene, one enzyme, one function hypothesis developed into the prevalent notion that genes can be understood in isolation, are endowed with particular characteristics of dominance or recessiveness, and produce discrete and unambiguous effects on phenotype." https://lnkd.in/duMqB2A View in LinkedIn

PRIMITIVE UNDERSTANDING. "Overall, we still have a limited ability to interpret how genetic variants alter gene regulation. We do not know how to “read the genome” and predict gene regulatory outputs. Our understanding of regulatory mechanisms and biochemical interactions has not yet matured into an ability to “read the code” and fully model transcriptional regulation." https://lnkd.in/dFv6Tsi View in LinkedIn

RATE LIMITING STEP. "As natural selection is rate limited by the amount of heritable phenotypic variation expressed in populations, genetic buffering mechanisms modulate evolution by controlling the amount of phenotypic variation that can be expressed. Genetic buffering therefore reduces evolvability and promotes evolutionary stasis." https://lnkd.in/duMqB2A View in LinkedIn