Twenty years on from Developmental Plasticity and Evolution: middle-range theories and how to test them

Area of Science:

• Evolutionary developmental biology
• Quantitative genetics
• Ecology and evolution

Background:

• Mary-Jane West-Eberhard's "Developmental Plasticity and Evolution" proposed developmental mechanisms as key drivers of adaptation and diversification.
• Despite extensive research on "plasticity-led" evolution, the role of development in adaptive evolution remains underappreciated.

Purpose of the Study:

• To re-evaluate and emphasize the significance of developmental mechanisms in adaptive evolution.
• To propose a novel framework for identifying developmental causes of adaptive evolution.

Main Methods:

• Integrating concepts of evolvability from evolutionary developmental biology and quantitative genetics.
• Developing a framework to systematically analyze the contribution of development to evolution.

Main Results:

• The proposed framework offers a more appropriate approach to identify developmental causes of adaptive evolution.
• It highlights how experimental and comparative developmental biology and physiology can test the role of plasticity in evolution.

Conclusions:

• Developmental plasticity is a fundamental cause of adaptation and diversification.
• A more integrated approach combining developmental biology and quantitative genetics is needed to fully understand the role of development in evolution.