SICB Annual Meeting 2014
January 3-7, 2014
Austin, TX
Symposium: Adaptation or developmental constraint? Uniting evolutionary theory and empirical studies of phenotypic plasticity
An individual’s phenotype is the result of the interaction between its genetic background and the environment in which it developed. Thus, developmental plasticity has potential to generate phenotypes adapted to environmental conditions forecasted during development.
However, empirical studies demonstrate that constraints or limitations on developmental plasticity can generate maladaptive phenotypes in adulthood. Additionally, there is evidence that too much plasticity in the face of increasingly unpredictable ecological conditions can generate phenotypes mismatched to the environment.
This symposium will explore intersections between evolutionary theory and our understanding of the proximate mechanisms of phenotypic plasticity to address questions such as: Under which conditions is phenotypic plasticity adaptive and when does it generate pathology? How does phenotypic plasticity relate to individual fitness and population health? How do the physiological mechanisms underlying phenotype constrain or facilitate developmental plasticity?
