The annual Evolutionary Biology Meetings in Marseille aim to bring together leading scientists, promoting an exchange of state-of-the-art knowledge and the formation of inter-group collaborations. This book presents the most representative contributions to the 13th meeting, which was held in September 2009. It comprises 21 chapters, which are organized into the following three categories: * Evolutionary Biology Concepts * Genome/Molecular Evolution * Morphological Evolution/Speciation This book offers an up-to-date overview of evolutionary biology concepts and their use in the biology of the 21st century.

The annual Evolutionary Biology Meetings in Marseilles serve to gather leading evolutionary biologists and other scientists using evolutionary biology concepts, e.g. for medical research. The aims of these meetings are to promote the exchange of ideas and to encourage interdisciplinary collaborations. This book collects 19 selected contributions presented at the 15th meeting, which took place in September 2011. It starts with a description of the life and work of J.B.S. Haldane, a remarkable evolutionary biologist of the 20th century. The remaining chapters are grouped under the following three themes: * New Concepts in Evolutionary Biology * Macroevolution: Mechanisms and Trends * Genome Evolution Offering an up-to-date overview of recent results in the field of evolutionary biology, this book is an invaluable source of information for scientists, teachers and advanced students.

Bemisia tabaci (Gennedius) has distinguished itself from the more than 1,000 whitefly species in the world by its adaptability, persistence and potential to damage a wide range of agricultural and horticultural crops in all six of the world's inhabited continents. B. tabaci inflicts plant damage through direct feeding, inducement of plant disorders, vectoring of plant viruses and excretion of honeydew. This book collates multiple aspects of the pest ranging from basic to applied science and molecular to landscape levels of investigation. Experts in multiple disciplines provide broad, but detailed summaries and discussion of taxonomy, genetics, anatomy, morphology, physiology, behavior, ecology, symbiotic relationships, virus vector associations and various tactics for integrated management of this pest insect. The book is focused primarily on progress during the last 10-15 years and is directed at workers in the field as well as the informed professional who may not necessarily specialize in whitefly research. The book is unique in providing broad coverage in relatively few chapters by recognized experts that highlight the state-of-the-art in our understanding of this fascinating but troublesome cosmopolitan pest.

The ontogeny of each individual contributes to the physical, physiological, cognitive, neurobiological, and behavioral capacity to manage the complex social relationships and diverse foraging tasks that characterize the primate order. For these reasons Building Babies explores the dynamic multigenerational processes of primate development. The book is organized thematically along the developmental trajectory:conception, pregnancy, lactation, the mother-infant dyad, broader social relationships, and transitions to independence. In this volume, the authors showcase the myriad approaches to understanding primate developmental trajectories from both proximate and ultimate perspectives. These collected chapters provide insights from experimental manipulations in captive settings to long-term observations of wild-living populations and consider levels of analysis from molecule to organism to social group to taxon. Strepsirrhines, New World monkeys, Old World monkeys, apes, and humans are all well-represented. Contributions by anthropologists, microbiologists, psychologists, population geneticists, and other primate experts provide Building Babies a uniquely diverse voice. Building Babies features multi- and trans-disciplinary research approaches to primate developmental trajectories and is particularly useful for researchers and instructors in anthropology, animal behavior, psychology, and evolutionary biology. This book also serves as a supplement to upper-level undergraduate courses or graduate seminars on primate life history and development. In these contexts, the book provides exposure to a wide range of methodological and theoretical perspectives on developmental trajectories and models how researchers might productively integrate such approaches into their own work.

In light of mounting fishing pressures, increased aquaculture production and a growing concern for fish well-being, improved knowledge on the swimming physiology of fish and its application to fisheries science and aquaculture is needed. This book presents recent investigations into some of the most extreme examples of swimming migrations in salmons, eels and tunas, integrating knowledge on their performance in the laboratory with that in their natural environment. For the first time, the application of swimming in aquaculture is explored by assessing the potential impacts and beneficial effects. The modified nutritional requirements of "athletic" fish are reviewed as well as the effects of exercise on muscle composition and meat quality using state-of-the-art techniques in genomics and proteomics. The last chapters introduce zebrafish as a novel exercise model and present the latest technologies for studying fish swimming and aquaculture applications.

In this book, Dr. Li and his author team plan to emphasize why mouse models are useful in vivo systems for understanding disease mechanisms and developing therapeutic strategies in blood cancers. The authors do not intend to cover all types of blood cancers; instead, they will focus on some major ones such as leukemias and lymphomas. However, the authors will try to cover as much as they can the cancer types and point out that many blood cancers need to be studied in mouse disease models although they are still not available at present. A major focus in the book will be to show what we can or cannot learn from mouse disease models and to also show the critical contributions of mouse models in therapeutic drug development.

The Second Georgia Genetics Symposium was held color. Soon after, he joined the sta? of The Jackson in September 2000, and the development of this Laboratory in Bar Harbor, Maine. book took place over the nearly 4 years that ensued. Much of Bill's research at the lab was centered During this time, many advances in the Genome around investigating phenotypic variability within Project and mouse mutagenesis were made. In the highly inbred strains, and in that connection he book overview, we discuss the development of the developed the technique of ovarian transplanta- Genome Project (which is the context for the sym- tion (even using embryonic donors) and a genetic posium), the role the mouse was playing at that scheme whereby graft compatibility could be time, how that role has evolved, and how the combined with the ability to distinguish o?spring chapters of the book address issues in mouse func- from donor and regenerated host ovaries. His tional genetics. Many of the chapters in this book work was in?uenced by the second World War, will provide useful resources for years to come. ?rst because The Jackson Laboratory turned into Of greater impact, our keynote speaker, the a production colony for the military, primarily to mutagenesis pioneer William L. (Bill) Russell, produce mice for typhoid testing, and secondly, passed away on July 23, 2003.

Marsupials belong to the Class Mammalia, sharing some features with other mammals, yet they also possess many unique features. It is their differences from the more traditionally studied mammals, such as mice and humans, that is of greatest value to comparative studies. Sequencing of genomes from two distantly related marsupials, the short grey-tailed opossum from South America and the Australian tammar wallaby, has launched marsupials into the genomics era and accelerated the rate of progress in marsupial research. With the current worldwide concern for the plight of the endangered Tasmanian devil, marsupial genetics and genomics research is even more important than ever if this species is to be saved from extinction. This volume recounts some of the history of research in this field and highlights the most recent advances in the many different areas of marsupial genetics and genomics research.

Foreword by Phillip V. Tobias The introduction of rhesus macaques to Cayo Santiago, Puerto Rico in 1938, and the subsequent development of the CPRC for biomedical research, continues its long history of stimulating studies in physical anthropology. The CPRC monkey colonies, and the precise demographic data on the derived skeletal collection in the Center's Laboratory of Primate Morphology and Genetics (LPMG), provide rare opportunities for morphological, developmental, functional, genetic, and behavioral studies across the life span of rhesus macaques as a species, and as a primate model for humans. The book grows out of a symposium Wang is organizing for the 78th annual meeting of the American Association of Physical Anthropologists to be held in April 2009. This symposium will highlight recent and ongoing research in, or related to, physical anthropology, and reveal the numerous research opportunities that still exist at this unusual rhesus facility. Following an initial historical review of CPRC and its research activities, this book will emphasize recent and current researches on growth, function, genetics, pathology, aging, and behavior, and the impact of these researches on our understanding of rhesus and human morphology, development, genetics, and behavior. Fourteen researchers will present recent and current studies on morphology, genetics, and behavior, with relevance to primate and human growth, health, and evolution. The book will include not only papers presented in the symposium, but also papers from individuals who could not present their work at the meeting due to limitations in the maximum number (14) of permitted speakers.

The order Rodentia is the most abundant and successful group of mammals, and it has been a focal point of attention for compar ative and evolutionary biologists for many years. In addition, rodents are the most commonly used experimental mammals for bio medical research, and they have played a central role in investi gations of the genetic and molecular mechanisms of speciation in mammals. During recent decades, a tremendous amount of new data from various aspects of the biology of living and fossil rodents has been accumulated by specialists from different disciplines, ranging from molecular biology to paleontology. Paradoxically, our understanding of the possible evolutionary relationships among different rodent families, as well as the possible affinities of rodents with other eutherian mammals, has not kept pace with this information "explosion. " This abundance of new biological data has not been incorporated into a broad synthesis of rodent phylo geny, in part because of the difficulty for any single student of rodent evolution to evaluate the phylogenetic significance of new findings from such diverse disciplines as paleontology, embryology, comparative anatomy, molecular biology, and cytogenetics. The origin and subsequent radiation of the order Rodentia were based primarily on the acquisition of a key character complex: specializations of the incisors, cheek teeth, and associated mus culoskeletal features of the jaws and skull for gnawing and chewing."

This book provides an evolutionary conceptual framework for comparative genomics, with the ultimate objective of understanding the loss and gain of genes during evolution, the interactions among gene products, and the relationship between genotype, phenotype and the environment. The many examples in the book have been carefully chosen from primary research literature based on two criteria: their biological insight and their pedagogical merit. The phylogeny-based comparative methods, involving both continuous and discrete variables, often represent a stumbling block for many students entering the field of comparative genomics. They are numerically illustrated and explained in great detail. The book is intended for researchers new to the field, i.e., advanced undergraduate students, postgraduates and postdoctoral fellows, although professional researchers who are not in the area of comparative genomics will also find the book informative.

Defined as, "The science about the development of an embryo from the fertilization of the ovum to the fetus stage," embryology has been a mainstay at universities throughout the world for many years. Throughout the last century, embryology became overshadowed by experimental-based genetics and cell biology, transforming the field into developmental biology, which replaced embryology in Biology departments in many universities. Major contributions in this young century in the fields of molecular biology, biochemistry and genomics were integrated with both embryology and developmental biology to provide an understanding of the molecular portrait of a "development cell." That new integrated approach is known as stem-cell biology; it is an understanding of the embryology and development together at the molecular level using engineering, imaging and cell culture principles, and it is at the heart of this seminal book. Stem Cells and Regenerative Medicine: From Molecular Embryology to Tissue Engineering is completely devoted to the basic developmental, cellular and molecular biological aspects of stem cells as well as their clinical applications in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. It focuses on the basic biology of embryonic and cancer cells plus their key involvement in self-renewal, muscle repair, epigenetic processes, and therapeutic applications. In addition, it covers other key relevant topics such as nuclear reprogramming induced pluripotency and stem cell culture techniques using novel biomaterials. A thorough introduction to stem-cell biology, this reference is aimed at graduate students, post-docs, and professors as well as executives and scientists in biotech and pharmaceutical companies.

Carabid ground beetles, sometimes called "walking jewels," are among the most thoroughly investigated insects in the world. This book presents the results of molecular phylogenetic analyses of 2000 specimens, including 350 species and that cover more than 90% of the known genera, from 500 localities in 35 countries. These comprehensive analyses using mitochondrial DNA-based dating suggest that carabid diversification took place about 40 to 50 million years ago as an explosive radiation of the major genera, coinciding with the collision of the Indian subcontinent and Eurasian land mass. The analyses also lead to surprising conclusions suggesting discontinuous evolution and parallel morphological evolution. With numerous color illustrations, this book presents readers with the dynamic principles of evolution and the magnificent geographic history of the earth as revealed by the study of beetles.

In a scientific pursuit there is continual food for discovery and wonder. M. Shelley (1818) Genomic analysis of aquatic species has long been overshadowed by the superb activity of the human genome project. However, aquatic genomics is now in the limelight as evidenced by the recent accomplishment of fugu genome sequencing, which provided a significant foundation for comparative fish genomics. Undoubt edly, such progress will provide an exciting and unparalleled boost to our knowl edge of the genetics of aquatic species. Thus, aquatic genomics research has become a promising new research field with an impact on the fishery industry. It is notewor thy that the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations has projected that current global fisheries production will soon become insufficient to supply the increasing world population and that aquaculture has a great potential to fulfill that demand. This book, Aquatic Genomic. ~: Steps Toward a Great Future, was designed as a collection of advanced knowledge in aquatic genomics and biological sciences. It covers a variety of aquatic organisms including fish, crustaceans, and shellfish, and describes various advanced methodologies, including genome analysis, gene map ping, DNA markers, and EST analysis. Also included are discussions of many sub jects such as regulation of gene expression, stress and immune responses, sex differ entiation, hormonal control, and transgenic fishes.

J. Warren Evans Department of Animal Science Texas A&M University College Station, Texas 77843 In the near future, improvement of domestic animals for the production of food and fiber is poised to undergo a revolution by the utilization of recent breakthroughs and advances in molecular genetics, embryo manipula tions, and gene transfer systems. Utilization of these techniques will have a wide impact on animal agriculture by improvement of production effi ciency via manipulation and control of many physiological systems. The end result will be to decrease production costs, increase food production and quality, and lower food costs. Health and well being of domestic and other animals will be improved as a result of new methods of disease diagnosis, vaccine production, and disease prevention practices. Genetic engineering also offers the possibility of utilizing animals for the development of pharmaceutical products to benefit society. Research progress will be en hanced via manipulation of the gene pool. The objectives of this Conference were to discuss the current status of animal bioengineering and to realistically assess the potential applica tions of current and future genetic technologies for the production of food and fiber to meet the needs of our hungry world, and to provide animal sci entists who may wish to utilize bioengineering in current or future re search programs with current background information regarding concepts, ap plications, and methodologies."

Comparative Vertebrate Reproduction is the only comprehensive textbook covering major topics in the reproductive biology of vertebrates, from sexuality and gametogenesis to reproductive ecology and life history tactics. The work draws heavily on recent reviews and papers while placing topics in a historical context and conceptual framework. In addition, the author provides detailed comparative surveys of each of the major topics discussed. Comparative Vertebrate Reproduction has been written as a textbook for upper-level undergraduate and graduate-level students in biology, zoology, physiology, animal science, and veterinary medicine. The work also serves as an excellent reference for researchers in medical and veterinary schools working in reproductive medicine.

This book introduces to the reader unfamiliar with primatology in Japan three research projects representative of the unique multidisciplinary approach carried out by scientists at Kyoto University, the country s premier institution for primate studies. The projects are all aimed at understanding the age-old questions, where did we come from, and what makes us unique or similar to our primate ancestors? The first chapter, by Naofumi Nakagawa, focuses on the cultural diversity of social behavior in the Japanese macaque. This chapter reviews research on primate culture, in particular the work on Japanese macaques, then presents what is arguably the first example of a culturally transmitted social convention in the species, called hug-hug . The second chapter, by Michael A. Huffman, introduces our current knowledge of self-medication in primates, based largely on a long-term study of wild chimpanzees at Kyoto University s longest ongoing chimpanzee field in Africa, Mahale, in Tanzania. The suite of behavioral adaptations to parasite infections in chimpanzees is compared with our current knowledge of self-medication in other primates and other animal species. The third chapter, by Yasuhiro Go, Hiroo Imai, and Masaki Tomonaga, describes the ambitious efforts to combine cognitive science and genomics into a new discipline called comparative cognitive genomics . This chapter provides an overview of recent advancements in chimpanzee comparative cognition, the construction of a chimpanzee genomic database, and comparative genomic studies at the individual level, looking into factors affecting personality and individuality."

The overall scope of this new series will be to evolve an understanding of the genetic basis of (1) how early mesoderm commits to cells of a heart lineage that progressively and irreversibly assemble into a segmented, primary heart tube that can be remodeled into a four-chambered organ, and (2) how blood vessels are derived and assembled both in the heart and in the body. Our central aim is to establish a four-dimensional, spatiotemporal foundation for the heart and blood vessels that can be genetically dissected for function and mechanism. Since Robert DeHaan's seminal chapter "Morphogenesis of the Vertebrate Heart" published in Organogenesis (Holt Rinehart & Winston, NY) in 1965, there have been surprisingly few books devoted to the subject of cardiovascular morpho genesis, despite the enormous growth of interest that occurred nationally and inter nationally. Most writings on the subject have been scholarly compilations of the proceedings of major national or international symposia or multi authored volumes, without a specific theme. What is missing are the unifying concepts that can often make sense out of a burgeoning database of facts. The Editorial Board of this new series believes the time has come for a book series dedicated to cardiovascular mor not only as an important archival and didactic reference phogenesis that will serve source for those who have recently come into the field but also as a guide to the evo lution of a field that is clearly coming of age.

It follows naturally from the widely accepted Darwinian dictum that failures of populations or of species to adapt and to evolve under changing environments will result in their extinction. Population geneti cists have proclaimed a centerstage role in developing conservation biology theory and applications. However, we must critically reexamine what we know and how we can make rational contributions. We ask: Is genetic variation really important for the persistence of species? Has any species become extinct because it ran out of genetic variation or because of inbreeding depression? Are demographic and environmental stochas ticity by far more important for the fate of a population or species than genetic stochasticity (genetic drift and inbreeding)? Is there more to genetics than being a tool for assessing reproductive units and migration rates? Does conventional wisdom on inbreeding and "magic numbers" or rules of thumb on critical effective population sizes (MVP estimators) reflect any useful guidelines in conservation biology? What messages or guidelines from genetics can we reliably provide to those that work with conservation in practice? Is empirical work on numerous threatened habitats and taxa gathering population genetic information that we can use to test these guidelines? These and other questions were raised in the invitation to a symposium on conservation genetics held in May 1993 in pleasant surroundings at an old manor house in southern Jutland, Denmark."

1 Kevin Moses It is now 25 years since the study of the development of the compound eye in Drosophila really began with a classic paper (Ready et al. 1976). In 1864, August Weismann published a monograph on the development of Diptera and included some beautiful drawings of the developing imaginal discs (Weismann 1864). One of these is the first description of the third instar eye disc in which Weismann drew a vertical line separating a posterior domain that included a regular pattern of clustered cells from an anterior domain without such a pattern. Weismann suggested that these clusters were the precursors of the adult ommatidia and that the line marks the anterior edge of the eye. In his first suggestion he was absolutely correct - in his second he was wrong. The vertical line shown was not the anterior edge of the eye, but the anterior edge of a moving wave of patterning and cell type specification that 112 years later (1976) Ready, Hansen and Benzer would name the "morphogenetic furrow". While it is too late to hear from August Weismann, it is a particular pleasure to be able to include a chapter in this Volume from the first author of that 1976 paper: Don Ready! These past 25 years have seen an astonishing explosion in the study of the fly eye (see Fig.

Natural selection operates among individual organisms which differ in their genetic constitution. The degree of hereditary variability within a species is greatly enhanced by cross-fertilization. Indeed, the mechanism of sexual reproduction occurred very early in evolution, for it is seen today even in bacteria. In Escherichia coli, fertilization occurs by passage of the single chromosome from the male into the female bacterium (LEDERBERG, 1959). In multicellular organisms, the separation of germ from soma, and the production of haploid gametes became mandatory. The gametes were of two types. One, extremely mobile, was designed to seek out and penetrate the other, which loaded with nutrients, received the mobile gamete and intiated the development of a new individual. The foundation for true bisexuality was thus laid. In the primitive state of bisexuality, whether an individual is to be a sperm-producing male or an egg-producing female appears to be decided rather haphazardly. In the worm, Banelia viridis, the minute males are parasites in the female. Larvae that become attached to the proboscis of an adult female become males, while unattached larvae sink to the bottom and become females (BALTZER, 1935). The more sophisticated state of bisexuality was initiated by setting aside a particular pair of chromosomes for specialization and making either the male or the female a heterogametic sex. Sex chromosomes as we know them were thus born.

This book attempts to outline population genetics and quantitative ge netics as they pertain to animal breeding and to discuss the theoretical aspects of this field of agricultural activity. Therefore, it brings into focus the basic principles of animal breeding, which are illustrated with per tinent examples; however, it is not intended to give recommendations for particular situations. Since the first edition, considerable development has occurred both in the basic and in the more applied fields. This has modified and in some cases even changed previously held conceptions, necessitating a thorough revision of the first edition. The extent of work in this sphere has reached dimensions which preclude exhaustive discussion of all its aspects in a volume of this size. Nevertheless it is hoped that this introductory text will stimulate the reader to explore the subject in greater depth and inspire study of the original literature. It is further hoped that my teaching experience has had some no ticeable impact on style and presentation. lowe much to constructive critical comments on the first edition. I am grateful to Dr. D. L. Frape for his help in changing my own translation into readable English. M. Asbeck and E. Fuchshuber have completed an admirable job in typing my handwritten script and A. Pickal accomplished the careful drawing of fresh illustrations."

Until quite recently, the field of reproductive immunology was very much a neglected area of biology, seen by most reproductive physiologists as of only peripheral importance. It was generally acknowledged as curious that a female mammal tolerated the intrusion of alien sperm and the persisting presence of an alien fetus, while reserving the prerogative of rejecting grafts of tissue, even when these were from her own mate. Several theories were advanced to explain this paradox, each with some supporting evidence: all were eventually shown to be inadequate. And there the matter was, on the whole, permitted to rest. In the last few years, the situation has changed dramatically, and the neglected area of overlap between immunology and reproduction has again become densely populated by research workers. As a symptom of this resurgence of interest, a specialist journal (the Journal of Reproductive Immunology) has been launched to supply what had rapidly been perceived as a need.

The foundation of quantitative genetics theory was developed during the last century and facilitated many successful breeding programs for cultivated plants and t- restrial livestock. The results have been almost universally impressive, and today nearly all agricultural production utilises genetically improved seed and animals. The aquaculture industry can learn a great deal from these experiences, because the basic theory behind selective breeding is the same for all species. The ?rst published selection experiments in aquaculture started in 1920 s to improve disease resistance in ?sh, but it was not before the 1970 s that the ?rst family based breeding program was initiated for Atlantic salmon in Norway by AKVAFORSK. Unfortunately, the subsequent implementation of selective breeding on a wider scale in aquaculture has been slow, and despite the dramatic gains that have been demonstrated in a number of species, less than 10% of world aquaculture production is currently based on improved stocks. For the long-term sustainability of aquaculture production, there is an urgent need to develop and implement e- cient breeding programs for all species under commercial production. The ability for aquaculture to successfully meet the demands of an ever increasing human p- ulation, will rely on genetically improved stocks that utilise feed, water and land resources in an ef?cient way. Technological advances like genome sequences of aquaculture species, and advanced molecular methods means that there are new and exciting prospects for building on these well-established methods into the future.