How Did Fish Get Their "Thick Lips"? The Developmental Mechanisms That Produce Diversity in Form

Explanation

Some species of fish have notably thick lips. A team at the Institute of Science Tokyo investigated the genetic and developmental mechanisms that produce this distinctive feature. It is known that even among closely related species of fish, body shape changes according to the environment they live in and how they feed. Investigating which genes and mechanisms give rise to differences in lip thickness offers a clue for understanding "how diversity in the form of living things evolves."

This can be said to be an example in which "natural selection" and "adaptation," taught in the study of evolution, as well as "development" (the process by which a body forms from a fertilized egg), are directly reflected in the shape of a familiar fish.