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The evolution of information storage and heredity
1Eva Jablonka is at The Cohn Institute for the History and Philosophy of Science and Ideas, Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Aviv 69978, Israel.
Trends in Ecology & Evolution
|January 18, 2011
Summary
Evolutionary transitions involve new information storage and transmission methods beyond DNA. These hereditary systems, ranging from chemical cycles to language, exhibit limited or indefinite heredity, shaping life's major evolutionary leaps.
Area of Science:
- Evolutionary biology
- Information theory
- Systems biology
Background:
- Information storage and transmission are crucial for evolutionary transitions.
- DNA sequence and replication represent a fundamental, but not the only, hereditary system.
- Hereditary systems can be classified by limited or indefinite heredity based on type diversity relative to individual numbers.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore the role of diverse information transmission systems in major evolutionary transitions.
- To analyze the characteristics of limited versus indefinite heredity in biological systems.
- To connect recent findings on emergent hereditary systems with evolutionary history.
Main Methods:
- Comparative analysis of information transmission systems across different biological scales.
- Theoretical modeling of heredity with limited and indefinite characteristics.
- Literature review of evolutionary transitions and associated information systems.
Main Results:
- Novel hereditary systems, beyond DNA, have emerged throughout evolutionary history.
- Autocatalytic chemical cycles and natural language exemplify diverse information transmission mechanisms.
- The evolution of these systems correlates with major evolutionary transitions.
Conclusions:
- Information storage and transmission are key drivers of evolutionary innovation.
- The concept of indefinite heredity is critical for understanding the complexity of life.
- Understanding diverse hereditary systems provides insight into the fundamental processes of evolution.
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