During evolution, new gene functions are created by the duplication and functional diversification of existing genes. Diversification can be at the level of transcriptional regulation or protein function. Kirik and co-workers now describe how for two paralogous MYB-related transcription factors –MYB23 and GL1 – functional diversification at both levels is involved in the development of branching hair-like structures on Arabidopsisleaves called trichomes (see p. 1477). Their study of trichomes in myb23 and gl1single and double mutants reveals that MYB23 controls trichome branching and trichome initiation at leaf edges, the latter redundantly with GL1. Promoter and protein-coding-region swap experiments indicate that, for trichome initiation, the diversification of gl1 and myb23 gene functions is determined only by how their expression is regulated. By contrast, the diversification of their functions with respect to trichome branching involves differences both in the regulation of the two genes and in the proteins they...
Interviews with Biologists @ 100 conference speakers
Explore our interviews with keynote speakers from the Biologists @ 100 conference, hosted to celebrate our publisher’s 100th anniversary, where we discuss climate change and biodiversity with Hans-Otto Pörtner and Jane Francis, health and disease with Charles Swanton and emerging technologies with Manu Prakash and Jennifer Lippincott-Schwartz.
Call for papers – Lifelong Development: the Maintenance, Regeneration and Plasticity of Tissues
Development invites you to submit your latest research to our upcoming special issue – Lifelong Development: the Maintenance, Regeneration and Plasticity of Tissues. This issue will be coordinated by Guest Editors Meritxell Huch (Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics, Germany) and Mansi Srivastava (Harvard University and Museum of Comparative Zoology, USA), working alongside our team of academic Editors. Submit your articles by 15 May 2025.
A case for broadening our view of mechanism in developmental biology
In this Perspective, B. Duygu Özpolat and colleagues survey researchers on their views on what it takes to infer mechanism in developmental biology. They examine what factors shape our idea of what we mean by ‘mechanism’ and suggest a path forward that embraces a broad outlook on the diversity of studies that advance knowledge in our field.
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