Epigenetic Mechanisms of the Cambrian Explosion

Cover
Epigenetic Mechanisms of the Cambrian Explosion
Copyright
Introduction
	References
	Further reading
1 -
Pre-ediacaran evolution
	Emergence of animal multicellularity
		Emergence of multicellularity
		Choanoflagellates
	Transition to multicellularity: new structure, new rules of game
		Evolution of the control system
		The choanocyte genome
		Choanoflagellates as precursors of metazoan multicellularity
		An “epigenetics first” hypothesis of emergence of multicellularity
	Placozoans
		Morphology
		Reproduction
		The genome
		Behavior
		The control system in placozoans
		Evolution
	References
	Further reading
2 -
Phanerozoic evolution—Ediacaran biota
	Ediacaran fauna—the prelude to the Cambrian explosion
		Fossil record
		The end of Ediacaran biota
	Sponges (Porifera)
		Fossil record
		Morphology
		Reproduction
		Evolution
		Development
		The control system and behavior in sponges
	Evolution of the neuron: the second informational revolution
		Evolution of the synapse
		Synaptic proteins in unicellulars
		Synaptic proteins in nerveless metazoans
		Evolution of the action potential and voltage-gated ionic channels
		On the path to differentiation of the neuron
		Fossil record and evolution of the neuron
	Cnidaria
		Reproduction
		Development
		The genome
		Phylogeny of cnidarians
		Fossil record
		Evolution
		Regeneration
	Triggers of Cambrian explosion: hypotheses
		External triggers
			Oxygen accumulation
			The Snowball Earth
			Change in sea salinity
			Change in the carbon–phosphorus ratio
		Ecological hypotheses
			Advent of predation
			Bioturbation
			Extinction of Ediacaran biota
		Internal triggers
			Evolution of Hox genes
			The advent of the developmental mechanisms of control
	References
3 -
Epigenetic requisites of the Cambrian explosion
	Gene recruitment
		Evolution of lens crystallin genes
		Neural involvement in recruitment of gene regulatory networks for eye development
		Neural involvement in recruitment of proteins for Bothrops snake venoms
		Neural involvement in recruitment of sex pheromones in salamanders
		Other cases of gene recruitment in metazoans
	Neural induction of epigenetic marks
		DNA methylation
			Neural control of DNA demethylation
			Evolution of DNA methylation
		Histone modification
			Neural regulation of histone modifications
		Epigenetic control of expression patterns and function of microRNAs
			Evolution of miRNAs
			Neural activity regulates miRNA expression
			miRNA regulation by neuropeptides
			Stress affects miRNA expression patterns
			Hormonal regulation of miRNAs
	Alternative splicing
		Neural regulation of alternative splicing
		A neural mechanism of accelerated production of splicing isoforms
		Evolution of splicing
	Immune defense: epigenetics of arms race with invading microorganisms
		Evolution of the innate immunity in invertebrates
		The acquired (adaptive) immunity in vertebrates
			Evolution of RAG1 and RAG2 genes
		Neural control of the acquired immune response
	References
4 -
Cambrian explosion: sudden burst of animal bauplaene and morphological diversification
	End of the ediacaran fauna
		The conventional ediacaran-cambrian boundary
		On the reality of the Cambrian explosion
		Low cambrian trace fossils
		Evolution of bilateral symmetry
		Evolution of body segmentation
		Cambrian fossils
	Transition to bilateria in extant paradigms
		Xenacoelomorpha
		Morphology
		The genome
		The nervous system
		Phylogeny and evolution
		Planarians
		Fossil record
		The genome
		The nervous system
		Neural control of behavior
		Reproduction
		Morphogenesis and organogenesis
		Planarian regeneration and development
		The instructive role of the nervous system in planarian regeneration
	Neural correlates and driving forces of the Cambrian explosion
		Selective pressure for centralization of the nervous system
		Centralized nervous system in cambrian fossils
		Centralization of the nervous system
		Evolution of the genome and the complexity of bilaterians
		Strong correlation between the centralization and growth of the nervous system and the evolution of complexity
		Centralization of the nervous system and the exponential increase of computational power
		Evolution of the centralization of the nervous system
		Instructive role of the nervous system in development, transgenerational inheritance and speciation
		A brief record of evidence on inductive role of the CNS in development, organogenesis, inheritance of acquired traits, and  ...
	References
	Further reading
5 -
Epilogue
	Epigenetic mechanisms of evolution and the source of the epigenetic information
		The CNS has an instructive role in development and organogenesis of extant bilaterians
		The maintenance of the metazoan structure
		The CNS and the Cambrian explosion
			Justifying the extrapolation of the CNS as the source of information in development of extant taxa to the Cambrian diversif ...
		Conservation of gene regulatory networks and the role of the CNS
	References
	Further reading
Index
	A
	B
	C
	D
	E
	F
	G
	H
	I
	K
	L
	M
	N
	O
	P
	R
	S
	T
	U
	V
	X
	Y
Back Cover