Bones/Muscles
Evolution/Anthropology
Developmental Biology/Morphology
Anna Hardin, PhD
Assistant Professor
Medical Anatomical Sciences
Western University of Health Sciences
Salem, Oregon, United States
Catherine Llera Martin
Western University of Health Sciences
Quantitative genetics is a powerful toolkit for understanding sources of within population variation. When applied to anatomical regions containing homologous structures, this toolkit allows us to pinpoint how genetic and environmental contributions to variation differ based on developmental timing, location in the body, and function. References to heritability and evolvability in peer-reviewed articles increased approximately two-fold from 2001-2010 to 2011-2020 based on PubMed, and are increasing at a similar rate this decade. Despite this increase in popularity, misconceptions about the applications, theory, and limitations of these methods persist, and literature on the topic is often intimidating to those unfamiliar with the field.
As interest in and resources for quantitative genetic research become more available, it is crucial that scholars engage with applications, theory, and methods across multiple disciplines to ensure that future research can go beyond past limitations. To that end, this symposium will provide an opportunity to engage with applications of these methods, the underlying theory, and future directions in the field of quantitative genetics. This symposium will also help familiarize anatomists and educators with concepts like heritability that are frequently misunderstood in the scientific literature. The three speakers each provide distinct perspectives on the topics of heritability and evolvability in homologous structures as well as the concepts of homology and evolvability more broadly.
Speaker: Catalina I. Villamil, MS PhD – University of Puerto Rico – Medical Sciences Campus
Speaker: Arthur Porto, PhD – University of Florida
Speaker: Alan C. Love, MA, PhD – University of Minnesota
