Development and evolution of animal biomineral skeletons

动物生物矿物骨骼的发育和进化

• 批准号: 2875523
• 金额: --
• 依托单位: University of Southampton
• 依托单位国家: 英国
• 项目类别: Studentship
• 财政年份: 2023
• 资助国家: 英国
• 起止时间: 2023 至 无数据
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=studentship-2875523
• 关键词: Development; evolution; animal; biomineral; skeletons

Uncovering the developmental, molecular, and cellular mechanisms by which different organisms grow and develop is fundamental for understanding the evolution of the diversity of animal forms seen on the planet today. It is unclear, however, how changes in gene expression during ontogeny result in the diversity of animal body plans seen in the planet today. This project will thus aim to link genotype to phenotype to understand the role of gene expression and ontogeny in the evolution of biomineralized skeletons. Sea urchins are a model system for understanding the evolution of skeletal morphology because the genetic regulatory networks that build their larval and embryonic skeletons are well known. Furthermore, they have a well-sampled fossil record, which makes them an ideal model system to understand evolutionary changes in morphology seen in deep time. The aim of this project is to quantify morphological changes in skeletal morphology during ontogeny of the sea urchin Mespilia globulus, and then identify the molecular mechanisms underlying skeletal growth. The student will then compare morphology at different developmental stages to the fossil record of echinoderms to test the hypothesis that morphological differences in the skeleton of different echinoderm groups is underlain by changes in ontogeny.

揭示不同生物体生长和发育的发育、分子和细胞机制对于理解当今地球上动物形态多样性的进化至关重要。然而，目前尚不清楚个体发育过程中基因表达的变化如何导致当今地球上动物身体结构的多样性。因此，该项目的目标是将基因型与表型联系起来，以了解基因表达和个体发育在生物矿化骨骼进化中的作用。海胆是了解骨骼形态进化的模型系统，因为构建海胆幼虫和胚胎骨骼的基因调控网络是众所周知的。此外，它们拥有良好的化石记录样本，这使它们成为了解深层形态进化变化的理想模型系统。该项目的目的是量化海胆 Mespilia globulus 个体发育过程中骨骼形态的形态变化，然后确定骨骼生长的分子机制。然后，学生将不同发育阶段的形态与棘皮动物的化石记录进行比较，以检验不同棘皮动物类群骨骼的形态差异是由个体发育变化引起的假设。