Haag Eric S, True John R
Department of Biology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA.
Curr Biol. 2007 Mar 6;17(5):R172-4. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2007.01.015.
Developmental mechanisms can evolve even when the trait they produce does not, and the nematode vulva has become a model organ for detecting such "developmental system drift". A new study reveals what may be the very earliest stages of this process by experimentally modifying key vulval signaling pathways in different species of Caenorhabditis, and carefully quantifying the results.
即使发育机制所产生的性状没有发生进化，发育机制本身也可能发生进化，而线虫的阴门已成为检测这种“发育系统漂移”的模型器官。一项新研究通过实验性地改变不同秀丽隐杆线虫物种中关键的阴门信号通路，并仔细量化结果，揭示了这一过程可能处于的最早阶段。
