This course will examine the development, evolution and function of the vertebrate body. The emphasis will be on the remarkable diversity in form and function of living vertebrates and on understanding the reasons for the similarities and differences we observe. Although major patterns will be traced throughout the vertebrates, our primary focus will be in patterns observed in amniote vertebrates, including humans. Laboratories will examine specific problems in the evolution of major organ systems through dissection, comparison and analysis of functional data.
Lecture topics will include:
Introduction to comparative biology
Diversity and evolutionary history of the vertebrates
Vertebrate development
Skeletal tissues
Evolution of limbs
Limb and axial muscles
Functional morphology of locomotion in air, land and water
Circulatory and respiratory systems
Evolution and development of the skull
The cranial skeleton
Jaws, teeth and muscles
Functional morphology of feeding
The brain and sense organs
Peripheral and cranial nerves
Guts and digestion
Urogenital systems.
Lab topics:
An introduction to phylogeny
Vertebrate diversity; the vertebrate body plan
Early development in vertebrates; amniote reproductive membranes
Bones, cartilage and vertebrae
Comparative approaches to limb morphology
The convergent evolution of flight in vertebrates
The heart and circulatory system
The evolution of the skull in vertebrates
Functional morphology of feeding in mammals
The brain and sense organs in vertebrates
The mammalian brain and cranial nerves
Uro-genital systems
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