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Commentary: When does understanding phenotypic evolution require identification of the underlying genes?

Mark D Rausher1, Lynda F Delph2

  • 1Department of Biology, Duke University, Box 90338, Durham, North Carolina, 27708. mrausher@duke.edu.

Evolution; International Journal of Organic Evolution
|May 15, 2015
PubMed
Summary

Identifying specific genes is not always necessary for studying adaptive evolution. Researchers can gain significant insights into evolutionary change and natural selection without gene identification, especially for nonmodel organisms.

Keywords:
AdaptationMendelian traitsevolutionary processesgene identificationphenotypequantitative traits

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Area of Science:

  • Evolutionary biology
  • Genetics
  • Ecology

Background:

  • Adaptive evolution involves both genetic and ecological processes.
  • Characterizing genes has advanced understanding of evolutionary change.
  • Natural selection can be studied without identifying underlying genes.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To address the debate on the necessity of gene identification in studying adaptive phenotypic change.
  • To evaluate when gene identification is crucial versus when it is not essential.
  • To provide guidance for researchers, particularly those working with nonmodel organisms.

Main Methods:

  • Review of common research questions and situations in evolutionary biology.
  • Consideration of the practical challenges of gene identification in nonmodel organisms.
  • Analysis of the necessity of gene identification for different research objectives.

Main Results:

  • Gene identification is crucial for answering certain evolutionary questions.
  • Definitive answers can be obtained for other questions without identifying specific genes.
  • The need for gene identification depends on the research question and context.

Conclusions:

  • Gene identification is not universally required for studying adaptive evolution.
  • Researchers can achieve empirical completeness without always identifying genes.
  • The decision to pursue gene identification should be context-dependent and question-driven.