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A Developmental-Physiological Perspective on the Development and Evolution of Phenotypic Plasticity

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Conceptual Change in Biology

Part of the book series: Boston Studies in the Philosophy and History of Science ((BSPS,volume 307))

Abstract

Our understanding of the development and evolution of phenotypic plasticity has evolved in the 30 years since the first Dahlem conference on development and evolution. The focus of this review is on the developmental mechanisms that produce alternative and conditional phenotypes in response to environmental signals. The role of environment is a critical factor in evolution, yet environment is almost universally ignored in developmental biology. The effects of environment are most clearly seen in postembryonic development, where the mechanisms by which environmental signals alter developmental trajectories are increasingly well understood. The outcome of altered developmental pathways is what we recognize as phenotypic plasticity. This chapter shows that the developmental mechanisms that produce phenotypic plasticity are diverse and that control resides largely at the physiological level, often via developmental hormones that switch between alternative developmental fates in response to environmental signals. In conclusion this chapters shows how robustness and homeostatic mechanisms are they key to understanding the evolution of conditional traits.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    It is worth highlighting that this is in contrast to others who have focused on phenotypic plasticity (Stearns, Chap. 6, this volume). My primary concern has been uncovering the developmental and physiological mechanisms of phenotypic plasticity, rather than articulating an abstract theory of phenotypic plasticity (e.g., life history theory).

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Acknowledgements

Work in my laboratory has been supported by grants from the National Science Foundation. I thank Mary Jane West-Eberhard for many fruitful discussions and help in building Table 7.1.

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  1. Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC, 27708, USA

    H. Frederik Nijhout

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  1. H. Frederik Nijhout
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Correspondence to H. Frederik Nijhout .

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  1. Department of Philosophy, Minnesota Center for Philosophy of Science, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA

    Alan C. Love

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Nijhout, H.F. (2015). A Developmental-Physiological Perspective on the Development and Evolution of Phenotypic Plasticity. In: Love, A. (eds) Conceptual Change in Biology. Boston Studies in the Philosophy and History of Science, vol 307. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-9412-1_7

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