Evo-devo: the evolution of a new discipline

Abstract

The history of life documented in the fossil record shows that the evolution of complex organisms such as animals and plants has involved marked changes in morphology, and the appearance of new features. However, evolutionary change occurs not by the direct transformation of adult ancestors into adult descendants but rather when developmental processes produce the features of each generation in an evolving lineage. Therefore, evolution cannot be understood without understanding the evolution of development, and how the process of development itself blases or constrains evolution. A revolutionary synthesis of developmental biology and evolution is in progress.