| Unit name | Plant Evolution, Development and Diversity |
|---|---|
| Unit code | BIOL30007 |
| Credit points | 10 |
| Level of study | H/6 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 4 (weeks 1-24) |
| Unit director | Dr. Jill Harrison |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Pre-requisites |
None. |
| Co-requisites |
None |
| School/department | School of Biological Sciences |
| Faculty | Faculty of Life Sciences |
Aims
Land plants originated from their aquatic algal ancestors around 470 million years ago. This unit explores how plants originated and diversified. It aims to give students a framework to discover the developmental and genetic basis of changes in plant form and function that occurred during evolution, discuss the ecological context for such changes, and identify their relevance to engineering the architecture of future plant forms.
Description
The unit is structured to give an overview of the evo-devo research field and introduce core principles of the evo-devo field. Teaching will take place on how genes enable the major organ systems of vascular plants to arise and will then build on these principles to explain how seed and flowering plants originated and diversified, with a focus on the radiation of flowering plants.
After taking the unit students will be able to:
Lectures, directed reading, research and/or problem-solving activities; and independent study.
Summative written assessment, with one essay question to be selected from a choice of two.
Most of the lecture material for the specific subjects considered in this Unit is taken from research papers and is not covered in any one textbook. You will receive a recently-updated reading list at the start of teaching of this unit but see two recent reviews below for an idea of the subject area.
Pires and Dolan (2012). Morphological evolution in land plants: new designs with old genes. Phil Trans R Soc B 367: 508-518.
Harrison (2017). Development and genetics in the evolution of land plant body plans. Phil Trans R Soc B 372: 20150490.
