Difference between revisions of "EvoDevo Journal Club"

Revision as of 00:40, 14 October 2009

Meetings: Wednesdays, 9:30-10:30 in Biopharm 3rd floor fishbowl

Weekly Readings: Fall'09

09/16/09: Dai et al. 2009. Characterization of microRNAs in cephalochordates reveals a correlation between microRNA repertoire homology and morphological similarity in chordate evolution. PDF

09/23/09: Heimberg et al. 2008. MicroRNAs and the advent of vertebrate morphological complexity. PDF

09/30/09: Bridham et al. 2009. An epistatic ratchet constrains the direction of glucocorticoid receptor evolution. PDF

10/07/09 Heineman et al. 2009. Layers of evolvability in a bacteriophage life history trait. PDF

10/14/09 Khalturin et al. 2009. More than just orphans: are taxonomically-restricted genes important in evolution? PDF

About the Journal Club:

This informal, interdepartmental discussion group is organized around recent literature and covers a broad range of topics relevant to evolutionary developmental biology.

Evo-devo is a growing and integrative field that draws on many biological disciplines. Student and faculty participants from all fields are welcome! We hope this less formal setting will also draw those curious about the field, as well as help to develop interdisciplinary contacts and ideas.

A few topics we have considered include:

comparative ontogenetics and its relevance to morphological evolution and novelty,

evolvability and evolutionary constraint,

gene regulatory network topology and robustness,

miRNAs and the evolution of complexity,

the evolution of genomic structure,

the prevalence of gene co-option,

questions of genetic and morphological homologies,

the evolutionary significance of developmental and phenotypic plasticity,

genetic assimilation,

the roles that genomic and ontogenetic features may play in speciation,

phylogenetic consideration of ontogenetic characters,

modeling of genetic, developmental, or cellular processes in evolution,

the role of genetic and protein networks in evolution,

as well as methods from allied fields that would fascilitate investigation into any of these topics.

As always we are willing and eager to field suggested readings.

Interested?

Join the Evo-Devo Journal Club!

To subscribe to the list send an e-mail to <majordomo@darwin.eeb.uconn.edu>.

Leave the subject blank.

In the message body type only "subscribe evo-devo".

Be sure not to use a signature in this message.

To unsubscribe from the list, do just as you did to subscribe, except make the message body "unsubscribe evo-devo".

To post messages to the listserv, address them to <evo-devo@darwin.eeb.uconn.edu>.

So, if you've found a paper or topic you think might be good for a discussion, feel free to share it with the group using this address!

If you have any comments or questions, please contact Frank Smith <frank.smith@uconn.edu>.