Does the inheritance of acquired characteristics play a significant role in evolution? In this book, Eva Jablonka and Marion J. Lamb attempt to answer that question with an original, provocative exploration of the nature and origin of hereditary variations. Starting with a historical account of Lamarck's ideas and the reasons they have fallen in disrepute, the authors go on to challenge the prevailing assumption that all heritable variation is random and the result of variation in DNA base sequences. They also detail recent breakthroughs in our understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying inheritance--including several pathways not envisioned by classical population genetics--and argue that these advances need to be more fully incorporated into mainstream evolutionary theory. Throughout, the book offers a new look at the evidence for and against the hereditability of environmentally induced changes, and addresses timely questions about the importance of non-Mendelian inheritance. A glossary and extensive list of references round out the book. Urging a reconsideration of the present DNA-centric view prevalent in the field, Epigentic Inheritance and Evolution will make fascinating and important reading for students and researchers in evolution, genetics, ecology, molecular biology, developmental biology, and the history and philosophy of science.

Bonduriansky and Day challenge the premise that genes alone mediate the transmission of biological information across generations and provide the raw material for natural selection. They explore the latest research showing that what happens during our lifetimes—and even our parents’ and grandparents’ lifetimes—can influence the features of our descendants. Based on this evidence, Bonduriansky and Day develop an extended concept of heredity that upends ideas about how traits can and cannot be transmitted across generations, opening the door to a new understanding of inheritance, evolution, and even human health. --Adapted from publisher description.

A pioneering proposal for a pluralistic extension of evolutionary theory, now updated to reflect the most recent research. This new edition of the widely read Evolution in Four Dimensions has been revised to reflect the spate of new discoveries in biology since the book was first published in 2005, offering corrections, an updated bibliography, and a substantial new chapter. Eva Jablonka and Marion Lamb's pioneering argument proposes that there is more to heredity than genes. They describe four “dimensions” in heredity—four inheritance systems that play a role in evolution: genetic, epigenetic (or non-DNA cellular transmission of traits), behavioral, and symbolic (transmission through language and other forms of symbolic communication). These systems, they argue, can all provide variations on which natural selection can act. Jablonka and Lamb present a richer, more complex view of evolution than that offered by the gene-based Modern Synthesis, arguing that induced and acquired changes also play a role. Their lucid and accessible text is accompanied by artist-physician Anna Zeligowski's lively drawings, which humorously and effectively illustrate the authors' points. Each chapter ends with a dialogue in which the authors refine their arguments against the vigorous skepticism of the fictional “I.M.” (for Ipcha Mistabra—Aramaic for “the opposite conjecture”). The extensive new chapter, presented engagingly as a dialogue with I.M., updates the information on each of the four dimensions—with special attention to the epigenetic, where there has been an explosion of new research. Praise for the first edition “With courage and verve, and in a style accessible to general readers, Jablonka and Lamb lay out some of the exciting new pathways of Darwinian evolution that have been uncovered by contemporary research.” —Evelyn Fox Keller, MIT, author of Making Sense of Life: Explaining Biological Development with Models, Metaphors, and Machines “In their beautifully written and impressively argued new book, Jablonka and Lamb show that the evidence from more than fifty years of molecular, behavioral and linguistic studies forces us to reevaluate our inherited understanding of evolution.” —Oren Harman, The New Republic “It is not only an enjoyable read, replete with ideas and facts of interest but it does the most valuable thing a book can do—it makes you think and reexamine your premises and long-held conclusions.” —Adam Wilkins, BioEssays

Illuminating the processes and patterns that link genotype to phenotype, epigenetics seeks to explain features, characters, and developmental mechanisms that can only be understood in terms of interactions that arise above the level of the gene. With chapters written by leading authorities, this volume offers a broad integrative survey of epigenetics. Approaching this complex subject from a variety of perspectives, it presents a broad, historically grounded view that demonstrates the utility of this approach for understanding complex biological systems in development, disease, and evolution. Chapters cover such topics as morphogenesis and organ formation, conceptual foundations, and cell differentiation, and together demonstrate that the integration of epigenetics into mainstream developmental biology is essential for answering fundamental questions about how phenotypic traits are produced.

This book formulates a relativistic theory of biology, challenging the common gene-centred view of organisms.

Transgenerational Epigenetics provides a comprehensive analysis of the inheritance of epigenetic phenomena between generations. Recent research points to the existence of biological phenomena that are controlled not through gene mutations, but rather through reversible and heritable epigenetic processes. Epidemiological studies have suggested that environmental factors may be heritable. In fact, environmental factors often play a role in transgenerational epigenetics, which may have selective or adverse effects on the offspring. This epigenetic information can be transferred through a number of mechanisms including DNA methylation, histone modifications or RNA and the effects can persist for multiple generations. This book examines the evolution of epigenetic inheritance, its expression in animal and plant models, and how human diseases, such as metabolic disorders and cardiovascular diseases, appear to be affected by transgenerational epigenetic inheritance. It discusses clinical interventions in transgenerational epigenetic inheritance that may be on the horizon to help prevent diseases before the offspring are born, or to reduce the severity of diseases at the very earliest stages of development in utero, and current controversies in this area of study, as well as future directions for research. Focused discussion of metabolic disorders, cardiovascular diseases and longevity, which appear most affected by reversible and heritable epigenetic processes Encompasses both foundational and clinical aspects including discussions of preventative in utero therapies Covers history, future outlook, disease management and current controversies

Current knowledge of the genetic, epigenetic, behavioural and symbolic systems of inheritance requires a revision and extension of the mid-twentieth-century, gene-based, 'Modern Synthesis' version of Darwinian evolutionary theory. We present the case for this by first outlining the history that led to the neo-Darwinian view of evolution. In the second section we describe and compare different types of inheritance, and in the third discuss the implications of a broad view of heredity for various aspects of evolutionary theory. We end with an examination of the philosophical and conceptual ramifications of evolutionary thinking that incorporates multiple inheritance systems.