Convergent Evolution of Desert Lizards: Phylogenomic and Morphological Analyses of Limb Development.

进化趋同是一个基本的生物学过程，它影响了生物体形态的许多方面，即相似的特征在多个谱系中独立进化。尽管它很重要，但我们不明白我们在自然界观察到的趋同背后的原因——基因构成的趋同是否构成形态趋同的基础？我们将研究澳大利亚和北美鬣蜥相似的后肢形态是否由相同的遗传机制决定。我们的研究将在脊椎动物中首次进行，并将提供有关动物形态与其基因组成之间进化联系的重要信息。

Evolutionary convergence, where similar traits evolve independently in multiple lineages, is a fundamental biological process, which affects many aspects of an organism's morphology. Despite its importance we don't understand what underlies the convergence we observe in nature - does convergence in genetic make-up underlie convergence in morphology? We will investigate whether similar hindlimb morphologies are determined by the same genetic mechanisms in iguanian lizards of Australia and North America. Our study will be the first of its kind in vertebrates and will provide significant information about the evolutionary link between an animal's morphology and its genetic make-up.