When the molecular processes of epigenetics meet the ecological processes of phenotypic plasticity, the result is a revolutionary new field: ecological developmental biology, or eco-devo. This new science studies development in the real world of predators, pathogens, competitors, symbionts, toxic compounds, temperature changes, and nutritional differences. These environmental agents can result in changes to an individual s phenotype, often implemented when signals from the environment elicit epigenetic changes in gene expression. Ecological developmental biology is a truly integrative biology, detailing the interactions between developing organisms and their environmental contexts. Ecological developmental biology also provides a systems approach to the study of pathology, integrating the studies of diabetes, cancers, obesity, and the aging syndrome into the framework of an ecologically sensitive developmental biology. It looks at examples where the environment provides expected cues for normal development and where the organism develops improperly without such cues. Data from research on teratology, endocrine disruptors, and microbial symbioses, when integrated into a developmental context, may have enormous implications for human health as well as the overall health of Earth s ecosystems. The study of epigenetics changes in gene expression that are not the result of changes in a gene s DNA sequence has recently provided startling insights not only into mechanisms of development, but also into the mechanisms and processes of evolution. The notion that epialleles (changes in chromosome structure that alter gene expression) can be induced by environmental agents and transmitted across generations has altered our notions of evolution, as have new experiments documenting the genetic fixation of environmentally induced changes in development. The widespread use of symbiosis in development provides new targets for natural selection. Ecological developmental biology integrates these new ideas into an extended evolutionary synthesis that retains and enriches the notion of evolution by natural selection.

Ecological Developmental Biology: Integrating Epigenetics, Medicine, and Evolution

Science & Math

Gilbert, Scott F.

Epel, David

Biological Sciences

Sinauer Associates is an imprint of Oxford University Press

The only book that, in one place: - details the three main epigenetic sources of phenotype: symbionts, altered chromatin structure, and plasticity. - discusses the various ways that development can be disrupted: teratogens, endocrine disruptors, global climate change, and mismatches between diet and environment. - documents the evidence for an extended evolutionary synthesis involving the modern synthesis, evo-devo, and eco-evo-devo. The revolution in molecular technologies has created a revolution in our perception of the living world. It is life, but not as we knew it. * Symbiosis, once thought the exception to the rules of life, is now recognized as a signature of life, including its development and evolution. We function, develop, and possibly evolve as consortia. * Developmental plasticity has transformed our ways of relating the genome to both the organism and its environment, showing that the environment can instruct, as well as select, phenotypes. * Environmentally induced modifications of the genome (epialleles) can be created by ecological agents and inherited for many generations, showing the ability of environmental agents to generate selectable variation. * Disease susceptibilities--especially to diseases such as cancer, diabetes, asthma, autism, and obesity--may be inherited through epialleles caused by environmental agents, by mismatches in developmental plasticity, or by particular combinations of symbionts. * Global climate change and endocrine disruptors are affecting how organisms develop and how they behave. The science studying this new world, uncovering the relationships between genes, developing organisms, and their environments, is called ecological developmental biology. This book presents the data for ecological developmental biology, integrating it into new accounts of medicine, evolution, and embryology. The new evolutionary science created by this approach to nature is called ecological evolutionary developmental biology (eco-evo-devo). The book documents the evidence for a new, extended, evolutionary synthesis, a synthesis that: confounds the creationist belief that evolution can't be described above the species-level; integrates aging and "Western" diseases such as diabetes, atherosclerosis, cancer, and obesity into an evolutionary context; and sees interspecies interactions both within the organism and between organisms as being critical for evolution, development, and fitness. For Instructors Instructor's Resource Library This resource includes all figures (line-art illustrations and photographs) and tables from the textbook, provided as both high- and low-resolution JPEGs. All have been formatted and optimized for excellent projection quality. Also included are ready-to-use PowerPoint presentations of all figures and tables.

Ecological Developmental Biology: The Environmental Regulation of Development, Health, and Evolution

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Books by Epel, David

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Epel, David. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Ecological Developmental Biology: Integrating Epigenetics, Medicine, and Evolution

Ecological Developmental Biology: The Environmental Regulation of Development, Health, and Evolution