The Molecular Basis of Phenotypic Convergence

Understanding what aspects of evolution are predictable, and repeatable, is a central goal of biology. Studying phenotypic convergence (the independent evolution of similar traits in different organisms) provides an opportunity to address evolutionary predictability at different hierarchical levels....

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Annual review of ecology, evolution, and systematics evolution, and systematics, 2014-11, Vol.45 (1), p.203-226
Main Authors: Rosenblum, Erica Bree, Parent, Christine E, Brandt, Erin E
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Alleles
Biodiversity
Convergent evolution
Demography
Evolutionary biology
Evolutionary genetics
Genetic mutation
genetics
Genotype & phenotype
Molecular biology
Molecular genetics
nonmodel species
Parallel evolution
parallelism
Phenotypes
Phenotypic traits
Phylogenetics
Population biology
Population genetics
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Summary:Understanding what aspects of evolution are predictable, and repeatable, is a central goal of biology. Studying phenotypic convergence (the independent evolution of similar traits in different organisms) provides an opportunity to address evolutionary predictability at different hierarchical levels. Here we focus on recent advances in understanding the molecular basis of convergence. Understanding when, and why, similar molecular solutions are used repeatedly provides insight into the constraints that shape biological diversity. We first distinguish between convergence as a phenotypic pattern and parallelism as a shared molecular basis for convergence. We then address the overarching question: What factors influence when parallel molecular mechanisms will underlie phenotypic convergence? We present four core determinants of convergence (natural selection, phylogenetic history, population demography, and genetic constraints) and explore specific factors that influence the probability of molecular parallelism. Finally, we address frontiers for future study, including integration across different systems, subfields, and hierarchical levels.
ISSN:1543-592X
1545-2069
DOI:10.1146/annurev-ecolsys-120213-091851