Comparing divergent model organisms

August 27, 2014 James V. Kohl Adaptations, Ecology, Model Organisms, RNA, Variations 1

Comparative analysis of the transcriptome across distant species

Excerpt: Overall, our results underscore the importance of comparing divergent model organisms to human to highlight conserved biological principles (and disentangle them from lineage-specific adaptations).

My comment: In the detailed comparisons of divergent model organisms portrayed in Nutrient-dependent/pheromone-controlled adaptive evolution: a model, I underscored what is known about cell type differentiation in species from microbes to man. By placing what is known into the context of nutrient-dependent amino acid substitutions and biodiversity controlled by the metabolism of nutrients to species-specific pheromones, I thought it would be clear that the best approach to understanding how biodiversity arose was to model it. Conclusion: “Minimally, this model can be compared to any other factual representations of epigenesis and epistasis for determination of the best scientific ‘fit’.”

The model arose from prior published works that clearly linked the epigenetic landscape to the physical landscape of DNA in the organized genomes of species from microbes to man. See for example: Human pheromones and food odors: epigenetic influences on the socioaffective nature of evolved behaviors. Conclusion: “Olfaction and odor receptors provide a clear evolutionary trail that can be followed from unicellular organisms to insects to humans…”

Now “…comparing divergent model organisms to human…” continues  “…to highlight conserved biological principles…”

These conserved biological principles are obviously the conserved molecular mechanisms of nutrient-dependent pheromone-controlled cell type differentiation we detailed in our 1996 Hormones and Behavior review article in the context of sex differences in cell types. Did anyone who is not an evolutionary theorist think that cell type differentiation occurred differently in different cells of different individuals in different species?

See for review our section on: “Molecular epigenetics” in From Fertilization to Adult Sexual Behavior
“Yet another kind of epigenetic imprinting occurs in species as diverse as yeast, Drosophila, mice, and humans and is based upon small DNA-binding proteins called “chromo domain” proteins, e.g., polycomb. These proteins affect chromatin structure, often in telomeric regions, and thereby affect transcription and silencing of various genes (Saunders, Chue, Goebl, Craig, Clark, Powers, Eissenberg, Elgin, Rothfield, and Earnshaw, 1993; Singh, Miller, Pearce, Kothary, Burton, Paro, James, and Gaunt, 1991; Trofatter, Long, Murrell, Stotler, Gusella, and Buckler, 1995). Small intranuclear proteins also participate in generating alternative splicing techniques of pre-mRNA and, by this mechanism, contribute to sexual differentiation in at least two species, Drosophila melanogaster and Caenorhabditis elegans (Adler and Hajduk, 1994; de Bono, Zarkower, and Hodgkin, 1995; Ge, Zuo, and Manley, 1991; Green, 1991; Parkhurst and Meneely, 1994; Wilkins, 1995; Wolfner, 1988). That similar proteins perform functions in humans suggests the possibility that some human sex differences may arise from alternative splicings of otherwise identical genes.”

See also: Alternative RNA Splicing in Evolution but try to think in terms of how ecological variation leads to ecological adaptations via nutrient-dependent alternative splicing of pre-mRNA. I tried to convey this message yesterday: There are no evolutionary events. There are only epigenetically-effected amino acid substitutions that differentiate cell types and pheromone-controlled cell type differentiation enables biodiversity. There is no model of how biodiversity arises via evolutionary events, because it doesn’t.

About James V. Kohl 1308 Articles
James Vaughn Kohl was the first to accurately conceptualize human pheromones, and began presenting his findings to the scientific community in 1992. He continues to present to, and publish for, diverse scientific and lay audiences, while constantly monitoring the scientific presses for new information that is relevant to the development of his initial and ongoing conceptualization of human pheromones. Recently, Kohl integrated scientific evidence that pinpoints the evolved neurophysiological mechanism that links olfactory/pheromonal input to genes in hormone-secreting cells of tissue in a specific area of the brain that is primarily involved in the sensory integration of olfactory and visual input, and in the development of human sexual preferences. His award-winning 2007 article/book chapter on multisensory integration: The Mind’s Eyes: Human pheromones, neuroscience, and male sexual preferences followed an award winning 2001 publication: Human pheromones: integrating neuroendocrinology and ethology, which was coauthored by disinguished researchers from Vienna. Rarely do researchers win awards in multiple disciplines, but Kohl’s 2001 award was for neuroscience, and his 2007 “Reiss Theory” award was for social science. Kohl has worked as a medical laboratory scientist since 1974, and he has devoted more than twenty-five years to researching the relationship between the sense of smell and the development of human sexual preferences. Unlike many researchers who work with non-human subjects, medical laboratory scientists use the latest technology from many scientific disciplines to perform a variety of specialized diagnostic medical testing on people. James V. Kohl is certified with: * American Society for Clinical Pathology * American Medical Technologists James V. Kohl is a member of: * Society for Neuroscience * Society for Behavioral Neuroendocrinology * Association for Chemoreception Sciences * Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality * International Society for Human Ethology * American Society for Clinical Laboratory Science * Mensa, the international high IQ society