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Using Whole Mount in situ Hybridization to Link Molecular and Organismal Biology
Published on: March 31, 2011
Homology and ontogeny: pattern and process in comparative developmental biology
1Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Institut für Biologie/Vergleichende Zoologie, Philippstr. 13, DE-10115 Berlin, Germany. gerhard.scholtz@rz.hu-berlin.de
Abstract:
In this article the interface between development and homology is discussed. Development is here interpreted as a sequence of evolutionarily independent stages. Any approach stressing the importance of specific developmental stages is rejected. A homology definition is favoured which includes similarity, and complexity serves as a test for homology. Complexity is seen as the possibility of subdividing a character into evolutionarily independent corresponding substructures. Topology as a test for homology is critically discussed because corresponding positions are not necessarily indicative of homology. Complexity can be used twofold for homology assessments of development: either stages or processes of development are homologized. These two approaches must not be con-flated. This distinction leads to the conclusion that there is no ontogenetic homology "criterion".
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