Limb
evo-devo
We seek to determine the developmental processes that have been modified to produce new limb forms, and the degree to which the nature of these processes biases limb evolution.
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sensory
adaptations
We seek to identify the main biological forces in the genome, during development, and in anatomy that promote the success of species in adapting to their changing environments.
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biomedical
applications
We seek to use newly established mammalian model species as "natural mutants" to illuminate the genomic and developmental basis of human congenital malformations and teratogenesis.
read moresears is president of PAN-AM sedb
Dr. Sears IS the president of the pan-american society for evolutionary developmental biology, the new evo-devo society of the americas.
Sears Lab receives NSF Dimensions grant
The Sears lab has received a grant from NSF dimensions of biodiversity to study the "genomic and developmental basis of sensory adaptations."
Sears Lab AWARDED NIH OD grant
the sears lab has received a grant from THE NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH to GENERATE THE FIRST TRANSGENIC MARSUPIALS
Sears lab mission
Organismal form is the product of a complex suite of interacting developmental processes. Variation in these processes allows mammals to adapt to changing environments, but also generates congenital malformations in humans. Developmental variation therefore presents a unifying concept for evolutionary biology and biomedicine, whose understanding is critical to the success of both fields. Our primary research goals are to determine how developmental variation within a species produces congenital malformations in humans, and among species generates new evolutionary forms in mammals.