M ech a n istic a p p ro a ch es to th e stu d y o f evo lu.pdfVIP

R EV I EW S Mechanistic approaches to the study of evolution: the functional synthesis Antony M. Dean * and Joseph W. Thornton‡ Abstract | An emerging sy nthesis of evolutionary biology and experimental molecular biology is prov iding much stronger and deeper inferences about the dy namics and mechanisms of evolution than were possible in the past. T he new approach combines statistical analyses of gene sequences w ith manipulative molecular experiments to reveal how ancient mutations altered biochemical processes and produced novel phenoty pes. T his functional sy nthesis has set the stage for maj or advances in our understanding of fundamental questions in evolutionary biology. Here we describe this emerging approach, highlight important new insights that it has made possible, and suggest future directions for the field. During the twentieth century, evolutionary and molecu- Too often, alternative explanations are viable. Despite lar biology diverged in subj ect matter and scientific important experimental work in evolutionary biology culture. Few scientists were trained in both fields, and (for example, REFS 1–9), claims that are based solely on many biology departments were split up. This is a great associations remain standard in the field. As a result, infer-