The developmental renaissance in adaptationism

Bridging developmental systems theory and evolutionary psychology using dynamic optimization

Interactions between evolutionary psychologists and developmental systems theorists have been largely antagonistic. This is unfortunate because potential synergies between the two approaches remain unexplored. This article presents a method that may help to bridge the divide, and that has proven fruitful in biology: dynamic optimization. Dynamic optimization integrates developmental systems theorists' focus on dynamics and contingency with the 'design stance' of evolutionary psychology. It provides a theoretical framework as well as a set of tools for exploring the properties of developmental systems that natural selection might favor, given particular evolutionary ecologies. We also discuss limitations of the approach.

A new scenario of the evolutionary derivation of the mammalian diaphragm from shoulder muscles

The evolutionary origin of the diaphragm remains unclear, due to the lack of a comparable structure in other extant taxa. However, recent researches into the developmental mechanism of this structure have yielded new insights into its origin. Here we summarize current understanding regarding the development of the diaphragm, and present a possible scenario for the evolutionary acquisition of this uniquely mammalian structure. Recent developmental analyses indicate that the diaphragm and forelimb muscles are derived from a shared cell population during embryonic development. Therefore, the embryonic positions of forelimb muscle progenitors, which correspond to the position of the brachial plexus, likely played an important role in the evolution of the diaphragm. We surveyed the literature to reexamine the position of the brachial plexus among living amniotes and confirmed that the cervico-thoracic transition in ribs reflects the brachial plexus position. Using this osteological correlate, we concluded that the anterior borders of the brachial plexuses in the stem synapsids were positioned at the level of the fourth spinal nerve, suggesting that the forelimb buds were laid in close proximity of the infrahyoid muscles. The topology of the phrenic and suprascapular nerves of mammals is similar to that of subscapular and supracoracoid nerves, respectively, of the other amniotes, suggesting that the diaphragm evolved from a muscle positioned medial to the pectoral girdle (cf. subscapular muscle). We hypothesize that the diaphragm was acquired in two steps: first, forelimb muscle cells were incorporated into tissues to form a primitive diaphragm in the stem synapsid grade, and second, the diaphragm in cynodonts became entrapped in the region controlled by pulmonary development.

Ontogenetic modulation of branch size, shape, and biomechanics produces diversity across habitats in the Bursera simaruba clade of tropical trees

Organismal size and shape inseparably interact with tissue biomechanical properties. It is therefore essential to understand how size, shape, and biomechanics interact in ontogeny to produce morphological diversity. We estimated within species branch length-diameter allometries and reconstructed the rates of ontogenetic change along the stem in mechanical properties across the simaruba clade in the tropical tree genus Bursera, measuring 376 segments from 97 branches in nine species in neotropical dry to rain forest. In general, species with stiffer materials had longer, thinner branches, which became stiffer more quickly in ontogeny than their counterparts with more flexible materials. We found a trend from short stature and flexible tissues to tall statures and stiff tissues across an environmental gradient of increasing water availability, likely reflecting a water storage-mechanical support tradeoff. Ontogenetic variation in size, shape, and mechanics results in diversity of habits, for example, rapid length extension, sluggish diameter expansion, and flexible tissues results in a liana, as in Bursera instabilis. Even species of similar habit exhibited notable changes in tissue mechanical properties with increasing size, illustrating the inseparable relationship between organismal proportions and their tissue mechanics in the ontogeny and evolution of morphological diversity.