Alerian Dolja, Oregon State University I follow the recent series of
Alerian Dolja, Oregon State University I follow the recent series of Eugene Koonin’s conceptual papers pretty closely, and I must admit that this latest one is a surprising PubMed ID:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26552366 twist. When we were taught Biology, work of Lamarck appeared to be a fine example of a feasible, coherent, and even likable theory that, however, had no experimental support whatsoever. By and large, this perception did not change in the last four decades of our direct engagement in biology research.Enter discovery of the CRISPR system based initially on the bioinformatics analysis of the prokaryotic genomes by Koonin’s team, and then confirmed experimentally in several labs, again, with Koonin’s direct involvement. Even though in its infancy (e.g., it is not known how phages respond to this defense; they either have CRISPR suppressors or are busy evolving those), CRISPR already emerged as a truly Lamarckian phenomenon, complete with a mechanism for insertion of the acquired phage DNA fragments into bacterial genomes. With the addition of piRNA facet of RNAi system and other, ‘quasi-Lamarckian’ phenomena such as HGT (particularly when mediated by GTAs), inheritance of the environmental DNA becomes a major player in, at least, evolution of prokaryotes. However, one can still ask how relevant this partial vindication of Lamarck is to the contemporary, mechanismbased understanding of biological evolution. One argument is that, vili-nili, Lamarck and Darwin based their concepts solely on observational natural philosophy rather than on investigation of underlying molecular mechanisms. It seems that the latter beats the former; suffice it to say that the Mendel laws are trivial consequence of the DNA replication mechanisms. In a sense, it does not matter so much, Darwinian or Lamarckian, when it is understood how evolution operates at the molecular, organismal, and population levels. This having been said, I still believe that the effort of reviving Lamarck’s ideas should be applauded for at least the following reasons. Firstly, it enriches the conceptual framework of modern evolutionary theory by providing a novel insight into complexity of relationships between genomes and environment, and by showing several amazing examples of how the latter can directly or indirectlyPage 11 of(page number not for citation purposes)Biology Direct 2009, 4:http://www.biology-direct.com/content/4/1/change the former. It is also fitting that Koonin who cofathered discovery of the CRISPR system, has also brought this, now molecular mechanism-based Lamarckism back to the fold of evolutionary biology. Secondly, it shows how even the seemingly opposing theories can be combined to complement each other. This pluralistic approach appears to be a strong and continuing trend in Koonin’s work, be it introns early vs late or TOL vs FOL debates. Thirdly, it emphasizes the need and the benefits of continuous buy SF 1101 rethinking and reinterpreting the history of science. The significance of the latter issue is hard to overestimate given the dramatic personal story of Kammerer (recently recapitulated in Science) that intertwined with the darkest days of Russian biology under Stalin and Lysenko. In conclusion, I think that Koonin and Wolf essay will be very instructive for the broad audience of the students of evolution and their opponents alike. It integrates so seamlessly the literary, historical, philosophical, and mechanistic approaches. It also helps a lot that the paper is very engaging, impossible to put as.