Through veiled mirrors: Fish fins giving insight into size regulation

Faithful establishment and maintenance of proportion is seen across biological systems and provides a glimpse at fundamental rules of scaling that underlie development and evolution. Dysregulation of proportion is observed in a range of human diseases and growth disorders, indicating that proper scaling is an essential component of normal anatomy and physiology. However, when viewed through an evolutionary lens, shifts in the regulation of relative proportion are one of the most striking sources of morphological diversity among organisms. To date, the mechanisms via which relative proportion is specified and maintained remain unclear. Through the application of powerful experimental, genetic and molecular approaches, the teleost fin has provided an effective model to investigate the regulation of scaling, size, and relative growth in vertebrate organisms. This article is categorized under: Establishment of Spatial and Temporal Patterns > Regulation of Size, Proportion, and Timing Adult Stem Cells, Tissue Renewal, and Regeneration > Regeneration Comparative Development and Evolution > Regulation of Organ Diversity.