Скачать или смотреть UI Explorer's Lecture Series: Dr. John Logsdon Part 2

10/21/2010 Sex, cells: The Molecular Origins of Meiosis and its Sometimes Strange Evolutionary History

Sex is a strange and costly way for organisms to reproduce. Why do they (and we) do it? This is an important, but still unanswered question in evolutionary biology. I will discuss research from my group that reveals the molecular natural history of sexual reproduction. I will focus specifically on meiosis, the special cell division that creates gametes and allows for sex to proceed. We are studying diverse biological systems that appear, in various ways, to be exceptions to many "rules" in sexual biology. Using data gathered from studies of these various organisms, I will ask and attempt to answer some of the following questions: When did sex & meiosis arise? How and from what previous function(s) did sex & meiosis derive? How has sex subsequently evolved? Can sex & meiosis be lost? What do these answers tell us about why and how sex persists?