Epigenetic Principles of Evolution

Nelson R. Cabej earned his PhD in biology at the University of Tirana, Albania, and currently serves as a researcher in the Department of Biology at the same university. His scientific career began with research in the fields of epizootiology, immunology and molecular biology at the Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology, Tirana, Albania. He also previously taught general biology at the University of Tirana and William Paterson College, Wayne, New Jersey, USA. He has published more than 50 scientific articles and 20 books in the fields of evolutionary biology, epigenetics, developmental biology and philosophy of biology, including 4 books with Elsevier: Building The Most Complex Structure On Earth (2013); Epigenetic Principles of Evolution, Second Edition (2018); Epigenetic Mechanisms of the Cambrian Explosion (2019); and The Inductive Brain in Development and Evolution (2021).

Epigenetic Principles of Evolution, Second Edition, fully examines the causal basis of evolution from an epigenetic point-of-view. By revealing the epigenetic uses of the genetic toolkit, this work demonstrates the primacy of epigenetic mechanisms and epigenetic information in generating evolutionary novelties. The author convincingly supports his theoretical perspective with examples from varied fields of biology, emphasizing changes in developmental pathways as the basic source of evolutionary change in metazoans. Users will find a broader view of the epigenetic mechanisms of evolution, moving beyond conventional changes in epigenetic structures, such as DNA methylation, histone modifications, and patterns of miRNA, sRNA, and mRNA expression.

This second edition is thoroughly updated to reflect new evidence and developing theories in the field of evolutionary epigenetics. New and revised chapters speak to the epigenetic basis of heredity, epigenetic regulation of animal structure and homeostasis, neural manipulation of gene expression, central control of gametogenesis, epigenetic control of early development, the origin of epigenetic information, evolutionary changes in response to environmental stressors, epigenetics of sympatric evolution, and the epigenetics of the Cambrian explosion, among other topics.

Part One - Epigenetic Basis of Heredity 1. Biological Information and Epigenetic Regulation of Animal Structure and Homeostasis 2. Neural Manipulation of Gene Expression 3. Central Control of Gametogenesis 4. Epigenetic Control of Early Development 5. Neural Control of Post-phylotypic Development 6. The Origin of Epigenetic Information and the Mechanisms of the Epigenetic Inheritance

Part Two - Neural-Developmental Basis of Evolutionary Adaptation 7. Evolutionary Changes and Stress Response to Changes in Environment 8. Intragenerational Developmental Plasticity in Nature 9. Behavioral Adaptation and Evolution of Innate Behaviors 10. Ontogeny: The Workshop of Evolutionary Change

Part Three - Epigenetics of Circumevolutionary Phenomena and the Mechanism of the Evolutionary Change 11. Transgenerational Inheritance in Nature 12. Experimental Transgenerational Inheritance

Part Four - Epigenetic Modes of Metazoan Evolution 13. Origins of Evolutionary Novelties and Innovations 14. Evolution by Loss 15. Evolution by Reverting to Ancestral Characters 16. The Role of Neural Crest in Vertebrate in Evolution 17. Allopatric Speciation in Animal Evolution 18. Epigenetics of Sympatric Evolution 19. Epigenetics of the Cambrian Explosion