Author: John Maynard Smith
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9780521218870
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 236
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Book Description
The question of why organisms reproduce sexually is still a matter of controversy. In this account, Professor Maynard Smith considers the selective forces responsible for the origin and evolution of sexual reproduction and genetic recombination, using quantitative population genetics arguments to support his ideas. The relative importance of individual and group selection processes are also considered. the aim is to give a clear statement of the theoretical issues, and present enough of the evidence to show what kinds of facts are relevant. It is hoped that where crucial evidence is missing, experimentalists and field workers may be encouraged to collect the relevant data. The author does not claim to solve all the problems he raises, but this clear and well-argued account should provide stimulating reading for advanced undergraduate students and research workers in evolutionary theory.
Author: Isa Schön
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 904812770X
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 617
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Book Description
Sex is the queen of problems in evolutionary biology. Generations of researchers have investigated one of the last remaining evolutionary paradoxes: why sex exists at all. Given that sexual reproduction is costly from an evolutionary point of view, one could wonder why not all animals and plants reproduce asexually. Dozens of contemporary hypotheses attempt to explain the prevalence of sex and its advantages and predict the early extinction of fully asexual lineages. The major theme of this book is: what is the fate of animal and plant groups in which sex is lost? Initial chapters discuss theory behind asexual life: what major disadvantages do asexual groups have to face, what are the genetic and ecological consequences and what does this theory predict for more applied aspects of asexual life, for example in agricultural pests, diseases as well as in cultural crops such as grapes. Cases studies in many animals (focusing on both invertebrates and vertebrates) and plants reveal parallel, but also singularly novel adaptations to the absence of meiosis and syngamy. And last but not least, are asexuals really doomed to early extinction or do genuine ancient asexuals exist? This book assembles contributions from the most important research groups dealing with asexual evolution in eukaryotes. It is a milestone in research on parthenogenesis and will be useful to undergraduate as well as graduate students and to senior researchers in all fields of evolutionary biology, as the paradox of sex remains its queen of problems.
Author: S.C. Stearns
Publisher: Birkhäuser
ISBN: 3034862733
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 392
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Book Description
Author: Giuseppe Fusco
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1108499856
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 491
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Book Description
A look into the phenomena of sex and reproduction in all organisms, taking an innovative, unified and comprehensive approach.
Author: D. Rollinson
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9780521891066
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 308
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Book Description
Summarises the current state of various studies investigating snail-parasite relationships.
Author: Angela E. R. Taylor
Publisher: Blackwell Science
ISBN:
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 126
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Book Description
Author: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Publisher: Food & Agriculture Org.
ISBN: 9251305269
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 319
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Book Description
This paper provides guidelines for new high-throughput screening methods – both phenotypic and genotypic – to enable the detection of rare mutant traits, and reviews techniques for increasing the efficiency of crop mutation breeding.
Author: Richard P. Shefferson
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1108138608
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 445
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Book Description
The existing theories on the evolution of senescence assume that senescence is inevitable in all organisms. However, recent studies have shown that this is not necessarily true. A better understanding of senescence and its underlying mechanisms could have far-reaching consequences for conservation and eco-evolutionary research. This book is the first to offer interdisciplinary perspectives on the evolution of senescence in many species, setting the stage for further developments. It brings together new insights from a wide range of scientific fields and cutting-edge research done on a multitude of different animals (including humans), plants and microbes, giving the reader a complete overview of recent developments and of the controversies currently surrounding the topic. Written by specialists from a variety of disciplines, this book is a valuable source of information for students and researchers interested in ageing and life history traits and populations.
Author: Joseph Heitman
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 1555819583
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 1161
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Book Description
Fungi research and knowledge grew rapidly following recent advances in genetics and genomics. This book synthesizes new knowledge with existing information to stimulate new scientific questions and propel fungal scientists on to the next stages of research. This book is a comprehensive guide on fungi, environmental sensing, genetics, genomics, interactions with microbes, plants, insects, and humans, technological applications, and natural product development.
Author: Austin Burt
Publisher: Harvard University Press
ISBN: 9780674017139
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 650
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Book Description
In evolution, most genes survive and spread within populations because they increase the ability of their hosts (or their close relatives) to survive and reproduce. But some genes spread in spite of being harmful to the host organism—by distorting their own transmission to the next generation, or by changing how the host behaves toward relatives. As a consequence, different genes in a single organism can have diametrically opposed interests and adaptations.Covering all species from yeast to humans, Genes in Conflict is the first book to tell the story of selfish genetic elements, those continually appearing stretches of DNA that act narrowly to advance their own replication at the expense of the larger organism. As Austin Burt and Robert Trivers show, these selfish genes are a universal feature of life with pervasive effects, including numerous counter-adaptations. Their spread has created a whole world of socio-genetic interactions within individuals, usually completely hidden from sight.Genes in Conflict introduces the subject of selfish genetic elements in all its aspects, from molecular and genetic to behavioral and evolutionary. Burt and Trivers give us access for the first time to a crucial area of research—now developing at an explosive rate—that is cohering as a unitary whole, with its own logic and interconnected questions, a subject certain to be of enduring importance to our understanding of genetics and evolution.
