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The role that developmental mechanisms play in driving and/or constraining morphological evolution is one of the major unanswered questions in modern biology. In recent years, the molecular analysis of development in divergent organisms has revealed that many developmentally significant genes have been remarkably conserved across many animal groups. Yet, a mouse embryo still develops into a mouse and a fruit fly embryo becomes a fruit fly. How have these highly conserved molecules and systems been utilized to generate the diversity of body plans that we observe throughout metazoans?

Comparative studies between the major model organisms in which genetic analysis is possible (ie., Drosophila, Mouse, C. elegans etc.) have focused on similarities, due to the fact that the evolutionary distances are so great that it is hard to interpret the significance of many differences. While similarities tell us much about common ancestry, they tell us little about the mechanisms by which the many diverse body plans observed among the animal phyla are generated.

We believe that intense developmental genetic studies in other model organisms will begin to answer parts of this question. We are interested in how the evolution of the diversity of arthropod body plans is related to the evolution of homeotic gene regulation, interactions, and function. The approach we are undertaking in this laboratory is to utilize the molecular and genetic capacity of Tribolium castaneum, red flour beetle, as a second insect genetic system to directly test developmental and evolutionary paradigms derived from Drosophila studies.

Research

- full size version-	This is a study of the role of developmental mechanisms in driving and/or constraining morphological evolution using the red flour beetle genetic system to directly test developmental and evolutionary paradigms. PDF file: Distinct roles of the homeotic genes Ubx and abd-A in beetle embryonic abdominal appendage development
-full size version-	This is report on the isolation and identification of the Tribolium homolog of the Ultrabithorax homeotic gene. PDF file: Molecular and genetic analysis of the Tribolium Ultrabithorax ortholog, Ultrathorax

Tribolium castaneum (top-wild type; bottom-Ubx, Abd-a double mutant)

Publication List

Also available in a Word document

Lewis, D.L., Decamillis, M., Bennett, R.L. (2000) Distinct Roles of the Homeotic Genes Ubx and adb-A in beetle embryonic abdominal appendage development. Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci., USA 97:4504-4509. (Cover)

Bennett, R.L., Brown, S.J. and Denell, R.E. (1999) Molecular and genetic analysis of the Tribolium Ultrabithorax ortholog, Ultrathorax. Development, Genes, and Evolution 209: 608-619. (Cover)

Sanchez-Salazar, J., Pletcher, M., Bennett, R.L., Brown, S.J., Dandamudi, T., Denell, R.E., and Doctor, J.S. (1996). The Tribolium decapentaplegic gene is similar in sequence, structure, and expression to the Drosophila dpp gene. Development, Genes, and Evolution 206, 237?246.

Bennett, R.L., M.K. Abbott, R.E. Denell. 1994. Insect Gravitational Biology: ground-based and shuttle flight experiments using the beetle Tribolium castaneum. J. Experimental Zoology 269:242-252.

Bennett, R.L. and F.M. Hoffmann. 1992. Increased levels of the Drosophila Abelson tyrosine kinase in nerves and muscles: subcellular localization and mutant phenotypes imply a role in cell-cell interactions. Development 116:953-966.

Gertler, F.B., Bennett, R.L., Clark, M.J., Hoffmann F.M. 1989. Drosophila abl tyrosine kinase in embryonic CNS axons: A role in axonogenesis is revealed through dosage-sensitive interactions with disabled. Cell 58:103-113.

Henkemeyer, M.J., R.L. Bennett, F.B. Gertler, F.M. Hoffmann. 1988. DNA sequence, structure, and tyrosine kinase activity of the Drosophila melanogaster Abelson proto-oncogene homolog. Mol Cell Bio. 8:843-853.

Links related to Research:

Tribolium Home Page

Munich Tribolium Page

KSU Tribolium Genetics Program