Project description
Newton and Darwin come together to explain life's morphological complexity
Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection encompasses a complex interaction among potentially unpredictable influences that result in heritable changes. Were Newton to explain evolution as a physicist and mathematician, he would likely prefer simpler unifying 'rules' for change based on cause and effect. The EU-funded EVOMORPHYS project will investigate the hypothesis that a Newtonian-Darwinian synthesis is best suited to explain morphological complexity and diversity. Combining biology, mathematical descriptions, computer models and physical experiments, the team will look at how interactions of physical aspects, such as skin geometries and colour patterns, with biological processes, such as signalling, can create new and 'better' patterns in a mathematically definable way.
Objective
My project focuses on answering one fundamental question: what are the drivers of Life’s morphological complexity and diversity? I claim that this question can only be addressed by a Newtonian-Darwinian synthesis that considers how Evolution exploits the physical properties of living matter. I will investigate how the evolutionary process explores the phase space of possible interactions between physical (mechanics, reaction-diffusion) and biological (cell signalling, proliferation, migration) processes and generates configurations that compute functional phenotypes. In particular, I will combine experiments in biology and physics, as well as mathematical models and Artificial-Life (ALife) numerical simulations. The latter will be based on physics’ first principles, symmetry-breaking processes and a genetic algorithm. First, I will investigate how geometry affects signalling by (i) imaging the embryonic development of colour patterns and skin geometries of multiple squamate species with various scale-to-colour pattern correspondences, (ii) generating CRISPR/Cas9 scaleless mutants in two lizard species to study the effect of skin 3D geometry on colour patterning, and (iii) performing ALife experiments to explore how the evolutionary process can modify signalling events and exploit geometry to generate new patterns. Second, I will analyse how growth can affect geometry by (i) performing in-silico experiments where coupling between growth and morphogenesis is systematically explored and (ii) evaluating how much the in-silico model captures morphologies generated with physics laboratory experiments using 3D layered polymeric gels. Third, I will build a Newtonian-Darwinian framework by coupling geometry, signalling, growth and mechanics in extensive open-ended ALife experiments. The results of the EVOMORPHYS project will constitute a novel framework for understanding how Evolution exploits physics to generate the morphological diversity and complexity of Life forms.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- engineering and technology materials engineering colors
- natural sciences mathematics pure mathematics geometry
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Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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H2020-EU.1.1. - EXCELLENT SCIENCE - European Research Council (ERC)
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Topic(s)
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Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
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Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
ERC-ADG - Advanced Grant
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) ERC-2018-ADG
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1211 Geneve
Switzerland
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