Category: Uncategorized

TAXONOMY. "Cowan defined taxonomy as composed of three ingredients: (i) classification, (ii) nomenclature, and (iii) identification of the unknown. At present, in taxonomy, the tail certainly wags the dog! Nomenclature, the least important ingredient and the least time-consuming, has its Code and Rules; classification, the most important ingredient of taxonomy, has nothing." https://lnkd.in/exx_wqw View in LinkedIn

ENGINE OF EVOLUTION. "Hybridization may drive rare taxa to extinction through genetic swamping, where the rare form is replaced by hybrids, or by demographic swamping, where population growth rates are reduced due to the wasteful production of maladaptive hybrids. Conversely, hybridization may rescue the viability of small, inbred populations." https://lnkd.in/emnTG9f View in LinkedIn

THE LESSER LONG-EARED TAXONOMIST. "Is it because taxonomists are so independently minded, headstrong, opinionated, long-eared, and quarrelsome they cannot agree on such an important definition?" Despite this, there have been numerous brave attempts to define a species. Only to quickly become outdated by new data. https://lnkd.in/exx_wqw View in LinkedIn

"HYBRIDIZATION in fungi has recently been recognized as a major force in the generation of new fungal plant pathogens. Hybridization also plays an important role in the transfer of genetic material between species." https://lnkd.in/eFwabbr View in LinkedIn

FRAGMENT FROM NATURE deals with the thorny issue of what is a species. It is a fundamental concept in evolution and biology. Yet it is far from a clear concept. Darwin, in Origin of the Species, carefully avoided defining it. And today, we know that genes are immensely mobile, sloshing around in a vast global genepool, and that evolution is not linear. To make matters infinitely worse, in 2010 synthetic life was created in the laboratory. Oh what a glorious mess! View in LinkedIn

"HYBRID ZONES are regions where individuals from genetically differentiated populations meet and mate, resulting in at least some offspring of mixed ancestry. Patterns of gene flow (introgression) in hybrid zones vary across the genome, allowing assessment of the role of individual genes or genome regions in reproductive isolation." https://lnkd.in/euQDjEc View in LinkedIn

LBS Healthcare Challenge winners. View in LinkedIn

"HYBRIDIZATION between species can lead to introgression of genes from one species to another, providing a potential mechanism for preserving and recombining key traits during evolution." https://lnkd.in/eaRt-9g View in LinkedIn

LBS Healthcare Challenge competition. View in LinkedIn

MOSTLY SINGLE ORIGIN. "We identified and investigated 712 eukaryotic protein families that have prokaryotic homologues. Of those trees, 571 (80%) reflect a single origin for the eukaryotic gene. For the remaining 141 genes whose trees do not directly reflect a single origin, there are causes other than LGT from prokaryotes to eukaryotes that can readily account for the lack of observed eukaryote monophyly." (LGT = Lateral Gene Transfer or horizontal gene transfer). https://lnkd.in/eqauQJt View in LinkedIn