Genes and DNA do nothing by themselves. All ‘genetic’ activity is in fact the activity of the larger cell, which decides how to make use of its genes. And the cell in turn is caught up in the activity of the whole organism.
Source: All Genetics Is Epigenetics
As soon as we are willing to acknowledge the organism as a purposive agent, everything in our evolutionary theory needs to be thought differently. Among other consequences, we discover evolution to be a coherent, directional process in a manner roughly analogous to ontogeny (individual development). But this does not mean all the things that many will automatically assume.
DNA, the hereditary material, may have appeared on Earth earlier than has been assumed hitherto. Chemists now show that a simple reaction pathway could have given rise to DNA subunits on the early Earth.
Source: Origin of life: A prebiotic route to DNA — ScienceDaily
Talbott: Not that the gene sequences are themselves mutated in the usual sense. Rather, the researchers found that various epigenetic modifications in the hippocampus alter the way the genes work (Weaver et al. 2004).
Source: What if there is no genetics apart from epigenetics? | Uncommon Descent
A recent study highlights the fact that the economic benefits of commodity export for primate habitat countries has been limited relative to the extreme environmental costs of pollution, habitat degradation, loss of biodiversity, continued food insecurity and the threat of emerging diseases.
Dogs have evolved new muscles around the eyes to better communicate with humans. New research comparing the anatomy and behavior of dogs and wolves suggests dogs’ facial anatomy has changed over thousands of years specifically to allow them to better communicate with humans.
“Galapagos is NOT an ‘aircraft carrier’ for gringo use.”
The first sexually reproducing organisms may have found that the energy-intensive enterprise bolstered defenses against malignant cells
Source: The Evolution of Sex Could Have Provided a Defense Against Cancer Cells | Science | Smithsonian
A team of scientists used a new technology to study the evolution of multi-celled animals, and uncovered something surprising in the process.
Source: New technology helps scientists rewrite evolutionary history • Earth.com
