Complex Organismal Functions

Complex Organismal Functions PDF Author: D. B. Wake
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 476

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Book Description
Complex Organismal Functions: Integration and Evolution in Vertebrates D. B. Wake G. Roth Editors The complexity of forms and functions of organisms studied in an evolutionary context prompts a fundamental question of modern biology: how did complex functional systems, apparently stabilized by high degrees of integration, evolve to their present diversity? This and related questions were discussed by 48 distinguished scientists from many fields of vertebrate biology, including functional and comparative morphologists, neurobiologists, reproductive biologists and endocrinologists, developmental biologists, ecologists, ethologists, population geneticists, and theorists, at a Dahlem Workshop. This volume is a report of that meeting. The major areas of discussion were: evolutionary diversification of feeding mechanisms; evolution of locomotor systems; trends in reproductive biology, especially the repeated evolution of vertebrate viviparity; and alternative and complementary concepts of the production of evolutionary novelties and patterns. These topics reflect the excitement and dynamism of current debate in evolutionary biology and constitute a cohesive point of departure for further research.

Complex Organismal Functions

Complex Organismal Functions PDF Author: D. B. Wake
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 476

Get Book Here

Book Description
Complex Organismal Functions: Integration and Evolution in Vertebrates D. B. Wake G. Roth Editors The complexity of forms and functions of organisms studied in an evolutionary context prompts a fundamental question of modern biology: how did complex functional systems, apparently stabilized by high degrees of integration, evolve to their present diversity? This and related questions were discussed by 48 distinguished scientists from many fields of vertebrate biology, including functional and comparative morphologists, neurobiologists, reproductive biologists and endocrinologists, developmental biologists, ecologists, ethologists, population geneticists, and theorists, at a Dahlem Workshop. This volume is a report of that meeting. The major areas of discussion were: evolutionary diversification of feeding mechanisms; evolution of locomotor systems; trends in reproductive biology, especially the repeated evolution of vertebrate viviparity; and alternative and complementary concepts of the production of evolutionary novelties and patterns. These topics reflect the excitement and dynamism of current debate in evolutionary biology and constitute a cohesive point of departure for further research.

Molecular Biology of the Cell

Molecular Biology of the Cell PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780815332183
Category : Cells
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description


Evolution Driven by Organismal Behavior

Evolution Driven by Organismal Behavior PDF Author: Rui Diogo
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 3319475819
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 260

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Book Description
This book proposes a new way to think about evolution. The author carefully brings together evidence from diverse fields of science. In the process, he bridges the gaps between many different--and usually seen as conflicting--ideas to present one integrative theory named ONCE, which stands for Organic Nonoptimal Constrained Evolution. The author argues that evolution is mainly driven by the behavioral choices and persistence of organisms themselves, in a process in which Darwinian natural selection is mainly a secondary--but still crucial--evolutionary player. Within ONCE, evolution is therefore generally made of mistakes and mismatches and trial-and-error situations, and is not a process where organisms engage in an incessant, suffocating struggle in which they can't thrive if they are not optimally adapted to their habitats and the external environment. Therefore, this unifying view incorporates a more comprehensive view of the diversity and complexity of life by stressing that organisms are not merely passive evolutionary players under the rule of external factors. This insightful and well-reasoned argument is based on numerous fascinating case studies from a wide range of organisms, including bacteria, plants, insects and diverse examples from the evolution of our own species. The book has an appeal to researchers, students, teachers, and those with an interest in the history and philosophy of science, as well as to the broader public, as it brings life back into biology by emphasizing that organisms, including humans, are the key active players in evolution and thus in the future of life on this wonderful planet.

Concepts of Biology

Concepts of Biology PDF Author: Samantha Fowler
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781739015503
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
Black & white print. Concepts of Biology is designed for the typical introductory biology course for nonmajors, covering standard scope and sequence requirements. The text includes interesting applications and conveys the major themes of biology, with content that is meaningful and easy to understand. The book is designed to demonstrate biology concepts and to promote scientific literacy.

The New Science of Metagenomics

The New Science of Metagenomics PDF Author: National Research Council
Publisher: National Academies Press
ISBN: 0309106761
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 170

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Book Description
Although we can't usually see them, microbes are essential for every part of human life-indeed all life on Earth. The emerging field of metagenomics offers a new way of exploring the microbial world that will transform modern microbiology and lead to practical applications in medicine, agriculture, alternative energy, environmental remediation, and many others areas. Metagenomics allows researchers to look at the genomes of all of the microbes in an environment at once, providing a "meta" view of the whole microbial community and the complex interactions within it. It's a quantum leap beyond traditional research techniques that rely on studying-one at a time-the few microbes that can be grown in the laboratory. At the request of the National Science Foundation, five Institutes of the National Institutes of Health, and the Department of Energy, the National Research Council organized a committee to address the current state of metagenomics and identify obstacles current researchers are facing in order to determine how to best support the field and encourage its success. The New Science of Metagenomics recommends the establishment of a "Global Metagenomics Initiative" comprising a small number of large-scale metagenomics projects as well as many medium- and small-scale projects to advance the technology and develop the standard practices needed to advance the field. The report also addresses database needs, methodological challenges, and the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration in supporting this new field.

Integrative Organismal Biology

Integrative Organismal Biology PDF Author: Lynn B. Martin
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 1118398785
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 371

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Book Description
Integrative Organismal Biology synthesizes current understandings of the causes and consequences of individual variation at the physiological, behavioral and organismal levels. Emphasizing key topics such as phenotypic plasticity and flexibility, and summarizing emerging areas such as ecological immunology, oxidative stress biology and others, Integrative Organismal Biology pulls together information from diverse disciplines to provide a synthetic view of the role of the individual in evolution. Beginning with the role of the individual in evolutionary and ecological processes, the book covers theory and mechanism from both classic and modern perspectives. Chapters explore concepts such as phenotypic plasticity, genetic and epigenetic variation, physiological and phenotypic variation, homeostasis, and gene and physiological regulatory networks. A concluding section interweaves these concepts through a series of case studies of life processes such as aging, reproduction, and immune defense. Written and edited by leaders in the field, Integrative Organismal Biology will be an important advanced textbook for students and researchers across a variety of subdisciplines of integrative biology.

Inanimate Life

Inanimate Life PDF Author: George M. Briggs
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781942341826
Category :
Languages : en
Pages :

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Book Description


Mapping the Future of Biology

Mapping the Future of Biology PDF Author: Anouk Barberousse
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 1402096364
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 178

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Book Description
Carving Nature at its Joints? In order to map the future of biology we need to understand where we are and how we got there. Present day biology is the realization of the famous metaphor of the organism as a bete ˆ machine elaborated by Descartes in Part V of the Discours,a realization far beyond what anyone in the seventeenth century could have im- ined. Until the middle of the nineteenth century that machine was an articulated collection of macroscopic parts, a system of gears and levers moving gasses, solids, and liquids, and causing some parts of the machine to move in response to the force produced by others. Then, in the nineteenth century, two divergent changes occurred in the level at which the living machine came to be investigated. First, with the rise of chemistry and the particulate view of the composition of matter, the forces on macroscopic machine came to be understood as the ma- festation of molecular events, and functional biology became a study of molecular interactions. That is, the machine ceased to be a clock or a water pump and became an articulated network of chemical reactions. Until the ?rst third of the twentieth century this chemical view of life, as re?ected in the development of classical b- chemistry treated the chemistry of biological molecules in much the same way as for any organic chemical reaction, with reaction rates and side products that were the consequence of statistical properties of the concentrations of reactants.

Nuclear Pore Complexes in Genome Organization, Function and Maintenance

Nuclear Pore Complexes in Genome Organization, Function and Maintenance PDF Author: Maximiliano D’Angelo
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 331971614X
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 245

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Book Description
The three-dimensional organization of the DNA inside the eukaryotic cell nucleus has emerged a critical regulator of genome integrity and function. Increasing evidence indicates that nuclear pore complexes (NPCs), the large protein channels that connect the nucleus to the cytoplasm, play a critical role in the establishment and maintenance of chromatin organization and in the regulation of gene activity. These findings, which oppose the traditional view of NPCs as channels with only one: the facilitation of nucleocytoplasmic molecule exchange, have completely transformed our understanding of these structures. This book describes our current knowledge of the role of NPCs in genome organization and gene expression regulation. It starts by providing an overview of the different compartments and structures of the nucleus and how they contribute to organizing the genome, then moves to examine the direct roles of NPCs and their components in gene expression regulation in different organisms, and ends by describing the function of nuclear pores in the infection and genome integration of HIV, in DNA repair and telomere maintenance, and in the regulation of chromosome segregation and mitosis. This book provides an intellectual backdrop for anyone interested in understanding how the gatekeepers of the nucleus contribute to safeguarding the integrity and function of the eukaryotic genome.

Anatomy and Physiology

Anatomy and Physiology PDF Author: J. Gordon Betts
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781947172807
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description