A Case for Broadening Our View of Mechanism in Developmental Biology

Authors

B Duygu Özpolat
Swathi Arur
Mansi Srivastava

Language

English

Publication Date

1-15-2025

Journal

Development

DOI

10.1242/dev.204605

PMID

39817401

PMCID

PMC11829770

PubMedCentral® Posted Date

1-16-2025

PubMedCentral® Full Text Version

Post-print

Abstract

Developmental biologists can perform studies that describe a phenomenon (descriptive work) and/or explain how the phenomenon works (mechanistic work). There is a prevalent perception that molecular/genetic explanations achieved via perturbations of gene function are the primary means of advancing mechanistic knowledge. We believe this to be a limited perspective, one that does not effectively represent the breadth of work in our field. We surveyed a representative and diverse group of colleagues to share their views on what it takes to infer mechanism. Here, we briefly examine the factors that have shaped the dominant view of mechanism, summarize responses to the survey, present our views, and suggest a path forward that embraces a broad outlook on the diversity of studies that advance knowledge in our field.

Keywords

Animals, Humans, Developmental Biology

Published Open-Access

yes

Recommended Citation

B Duygu Özpolat, Swathi Arur, and Mansi Srivastava, "A Case for Broadening Our View of Mechanism in Developmental Biology" (2025). Faculty, Staff and Student Publications. 5303.
https://digitalcommons.library.tmc.edu/uthgsbs_docs/5303