The Interdisciplinary Science Changing How We Understand Life
Explore the RevolutionWhat if you could teach biology in a way that reveals the deep connections between all living things, from humans to fruit flies to sea anemones? Evolutionary developmental biology, or "evo-devo," is doing exactly that—and in the process, it's transforming how we teach biology to the next generation of scientists. By bridging the historical gap between the study of evolution (how species change over generations) and development (how a single fertilized egg grows into a complex organism), evo-devo provides a more complete picture of life's incredible diversity 5 .
This interdisciplinary approach doesn't just add new facts to the curriculum—it challenges the very way we think about biological organization. As one researcher notes, instead of a single disciplinary approach being fundamental, "different methodologies from biological disciplines must be synthesized to generate empirically adequate explanations" 1 . For educators, this means moving beyond traditional boundaries to show students how genetics, embryology, paleontology, and molecular biology work together to solve biology's greatest mysteries.
Evo-devo compares developmental processes across different organisms to understand how these processes have evolved over time 3 . While its roots extend back to 19th century embryology, the field truly emerged as a distinct discipline in the 1970s and 1980s, when new technologies allowed scientists to examine the genetic control of development 2 3 .
Dissimilar organs in different species—such as the eyes of insects, vertebrates, and squid—are controlled by similar ancient genes, revealing a common evolutionary origin despite their different appearances 3 .
A conserved set of genes that guides development across diverse organisms. These genes are typically regulatory genes that switch other genes on and off, rather than genes that code for structural proteins 3 .
The same toolkit genes are used multiple times in different contexts during an organism's development, explaining how complex forms can evolve without entirely new genetic material 3 .
Major evolutionary changes often result from changes in how genes are regulated—when and where they turn on and off—rather than mutations in the protein-coding regions of genes themselves 3 .
Karl Ernst von Baer
Described laws of development showing that embryos of different species resemble each other more closely early in development 2
Stephen J. Gould
Published "Ontogeny and Phylogeny," revitalizing interest in evolutionary embryology 3 5
Nobel Prize
Awarded to Lewis, Nüsslein-Volhard, and Wieschaus for discoveries of genetic control of early embryonic development 3
One of the most illuminating experiments in evo-devo history began with Edward B. Lewis's work on fruit flies in the 1970s. Lewis studied homeotic genes—genes that determine the identity of body segments in developing embryos 3 .
The most startling finding was that the homeotic genes of fruit flies and mammals were not just similar—they contained an almost identical DNA sequence called the homeobox, and they could functionally substitute for one another 3 . This revealed that the genetic toolkit for building body plans is deeply conserved across animal evolution.
This discovery provided powerful evidence for deep homology and demonstrated that evolution works largely by tinkering with existing genetic programs rather than inventing new ones from scratch. As Sean B. Carroll notes, these genes "are reused, unchanged, many times in different parts of the embryo and at different stages of development, forming a complex cascade of control" 3 .
Percentage of conserved homeotic genes across species
Modern evo-devo research relies on an interdisciplinary array of techniques that combine traditional embryology with cutting-edge molecular biology. The field has been revolutionized by what researchers can now study, thanks to both methodological advances and the expansion beyond traditional model organisms 4 9 .
Visualizing when and where genes are active during development
Showing that limb development genes are activated in diverse appendages 3
Precisely modifying genes to test their function
Studying gene function in non-traditional model organisms like corals 4
Profiling gene activity in individual cells
Creating cell atlases of developing organisms like spiders 4
Integrating evo-devo into biology curricula addresses several persistent challenges in science education:
Traditional biology teaching often presents genes as directly causing traits in a one-to-one relationship. Evo-devo reveals a more complex reality: genes operate in networks, and the same genes are reused in different contexts. Teaching this helps students understand biological complexity rather than seeking simple genetic determinism 1 6 .
By showing how changes in development create evolutionary novelty, evo-devo provides visible, understandable mechanisms for evolutionary change. Students can see how a small change in the timing or location of gene expression can produce dramatic morphological differences 5 .
Evo-devo naturally demonstrates how scientific problems structure investigations. Instead of presenting biology as a collection of facts, educators can use evo-devo examples to show how questions guide the integration of different biological disciplines 1 .
Research has identified specific conceptual difficulties students encounter when learning evo-devo, including challenges understanding how conserved gene networks can operate in different developmental contexts, and how the same genes can be responsible for different structures in different organisms 6 . Effective teaching strategies address these difficulties directly by providing clear examples and emphasizing the conceptual framework.
As evo-devo continues to expand, it's incorporating new technologies and organismal diversity. The field is increasingly studying non-traditional model organisms, especially from marine environments, which offers fresh insights into evolutionary history 4 9 . For instance, recent research on lophotrochozoans (including mollusks and annelids) has revealed surprising conservation of chromosomal organization across bilaterian animals 9 .
These advances have direct implications for biology education. They provide ever-richer case studies for teaching fundamental biological principles. More importantly, they offer a integrated perspective that reflects how biological research actually works—across disciplines, across levels of biological organization, and across the tremendous diversity of life.
The interdisciplinary lessons from evo-devo practice ultimately point toward what philosopher Alan Love calls "a non-reductionist epistemology in biology" 1 . By embracing this perspective, biology education can better prepare students to think like scientists—synthesizing information from multiple sources, appreciating different methodological approaches, and understanding both the patterns and processes that have shaped life in all its magnificent forms.
As we continue to unravel the mysteries of how genes and development interact to create evolutionary change, we don't just add to our knowledge—we transform our very understanding of biological science itself.