The making of differences between fins and limbs

‘Evo‐devo’, an interdisciplinary field based on developmental biology, includes studies on the evolutionary processes leading to organ morphologies and functions. One fascinating theme in evo‐devo is how fish fins evolved into tetrapod limbs. Studies by many scientists, including geneticists, mathem...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of anatomy 2013-01, Vol.222 (1), p.100-113
Main Authors: Yano, Tohru, Tamura, Koji
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animal Fins - embryology
Animals
Biological Evolution
Extremities - embryology
fin‐to‐limb evolution
Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental
paired appendage development
repression mode of apical fold
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Summary:‘Evo‐devo’, an interdisciplinary field based on developmental biology, includes studies on the evolutionary processes leading to organ morphologies and functions. One fascinating theme in evo‐devo is how fish fins evolved into tetrapod limbs. Studies by many scientists, including geneticists, mathematical biologists, and paleontologists, have led to the idea that fins and limbs are homologous organs; now it is the job of developmental biologists to integrate these data into a reliable scenario for the mechanism of fin‐to‐limb evolution. Here, we describe the fin‐to‐limb transition based on key recent developmental studies from various research fields that describe mechanisms that may underlie the development of fins, limb‐like fins, and limbs.
ISSN:0021-8782
1469-7580
DOI:10.1111/j.1469-7580.2012.01491.x