Abstract
Homology is a natural kind term and a precise account of what homologyis has to come out of theories about the role of homologues in evolution anddevelopment. Definitions of homology are discussed with respect to the questionas to whether they are able to give a non-circular account of thecorrespondenceor sameness referred to by homology. It is argued that standard accounts tiehomology to operational criteria or specific research projects, but are not yetable to offer a concept of homology that does not presuppose a version ofhomology or a comparable notion of sameness. This is the case for phylogeneticdefinitions that trace structures back to the common ancestor as well as fordevelopmental approaches such as Wagner's biological homology concept. Incontrast, molecular homology is able to offer a definition of homology in genesand proteins that explicates homology by reference to more basic notions.Molecular correspondence originates by means of specific features of causalprocesses. It is speculated that further understanding of morphogenesis mightenable biologists to give a theoretically deeper definition of homology alongsimilar lines: an account which makes reference to the concrete mechanisms thatoperate in organisms.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Abouheif E., Akam M., Dickinson W.J., Holland P.W.H., Meyer A., Patel N.H. et al. 1997. Homology and Developmental Genes. Trends in Genetics 13: 432–433.
Bolker J.A. and Raff R.A. 1996. Developmental Genetics and Traditional Homology. BioEssays 18: 489–494.
de Beer G. 1971. Homology, An Unsolved Problem. Oxford University Press, Glasgow.
Donoghue M.J. 1992. Homology. In: Keller E.F. and Lloyd E.A. (eds), Keywords in Evolutionary Biology. Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA, pp. 170–179.
Fristrup K. 1992. Character: Current Usages. In: Keller E.F. and Lloyd E.A. (eds), Keywords in Evolutionary Biology. Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA, pp. 45–51.
Ghiselin M.T. 1976. The Nomenclature of Correspondence: A New Look at “Homology” and “Analogy”. In: Masterton R.B., Hodos W. and Jerison H. (eds), Evolution, Brain, and Behavior: Persistent Problems. John Wiley & Sons, New York, pp. 129–142.
Gilbert S.F., Opitz J.M. and Raff R.A. 1996. Resynthesizing Evolutionary and Developmental Biology. Developmental Biology 173: 357–372.
Godfrey-Smith P. 1999. Genes and Codes: Lessons from the Philosophy of Mind? In: Hardcastle V.G. (ed.), Biology Meets Psychology: Constraints, Conjectures, Connections. MIT Press, Cambridge, MA, pp. 305–331.
Goodwin B.C. 1982. Development and Evolution. J. Theoretical Biol. 97: 43–55.
Goodwin B.C. 1984. Changing from an Evolutionary to a Generative Paradigm in Biology. In: Pollard J.W. (ed.), Evolutionary Theory: Paths into the Future. John Wiley & Sons, Chicester, Australia, pp. 99–120.
Griffiths P.E. 2001. Genetic Information: A Metaphor In Search of a Theory. Philosophy of Science 68: 394–412.
Hall B.K. 1992. Evolutionary Developmental Biology. Chapman & Hall, London.
Haszprunar G. 1992. The Types of Homology and their Significance for Evolutionary Biology and Systematics. J. Evol. Biol. 5: 13–24.
Hillis D.M. 1994. Homology in Molecular Biology. In: Hall B.K. (ed.), Homology: The Hierarchical Basis of Comparative Biology. Academic Press, San Diego, pp. 339–368.
Jardine N. 1967. The Concept of Homology in Biology. Br. J. Phil. Sci. 18: 125–139.
Lankester E.R. 1870. On the Use of the Term Homology in Modern Zoology, and the Dinstinction between Homogenetic and Homoplastic Agreements. Annals and Magazine of Natural History 4th Ser. 6: 34–43.
Machamer P., Darden L. and Craver C.F. 2000. Thinking about Mechanisms. Phil. Sci. 67: 1–25.
Maynard Smith J., Burian R., Kauffman S., Alberch P., Campbell J., Goodwin B. et al. 1985. Developmental Constraints and Evolution. Quart. Rev. Biol. 60: 265–287.
Mayr E. 1982. The Growth of Biological Thought. Belknap Press, Cambridge, MA.
Minelli A. and Peruffo B. 1991. Developmental Pathways, Homology, and Homonomy in Metameric Animals. J. Evol. Biol. 4: 429–445.
Owen R. 1843. Lectures on the Comparative Anatomy and Physiology of the Vertebrate Animals, Delivered at the Royal College of Surgeons, in 1843. Longman, Brown, Green, and Longmans, London.
Reeck G.R., de Haën C., Teller D.C., Doolittle R.F., Fitch W.M., Dickerson R.E. et al. 1987. “Homology” in Proteins and Nucleic Acids: A Terminological Muddle and a Way out of It. Cell 50: 667–667.
Remane A. 1952. Die Grundlagen des naturlichen Systems, der vergleichenden Anatomie und der Phylogenetik. Otto Koeltz, Königsstein, Reprinted in 1971.
Roth V.L. 1984. On Homology. Biol. J. Linnean Society 22: 13–29.
Roth V.L. 1988. The Biological Basis of Homology. In: Humphries C.J. (ed.), Ontogeny and Systematics. Columbia University Press, New York, pp. 1–26.
Roth V.L. 1994. Within and Between Organisms: Replicators, Lineages, and Homologues. In: Hall B.K. (ed.), Homology: The Hierarchical Basis of Comparative Biology. Academic Press, San Diego, pp. 301–337.
Sarkar S. 1996. Biological Information: A Skeptical Look at Some Dogmas of Molecular Biology. In: Sarkar S. (ed.), The Philosophy and History of Molecular Biology: New Perspectives. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht, pp. 187–231.
Simpson G.G. 1967. Principles of Animal Taxonomy. Columbia University Press, New York.
Sneath P.H.A. and Sokal R.R. 1973. Numerical Taxonomy: The Principles and Practice of Numerical Classification. W.H. Freeman and Company, San Francisco.
Sober E. 1988. Reconstructing the Past: Parsimony, Evolution, and Inference. MIT Press, Cambridge, MA.
Striedter G.F. 1998. Stepping into the Same River Twice: Homologues as Recurring Attractors in Epigenetic Landscapes. Brain, Behavior and Evolution 52: 218–231.
Striedter G.F. and Northcutt R.G. 1991. Biological Hierarchies and the Concept of Homology. Brain, Behavior and Evolution 38: 177–189.
van Valen L.M. 1982. Homology and Causes. J. Morphol. 173: 305–312.
Waddington C.H. 1957. The Strategy of the Genes. Alley & Unwin, London.
Wagner G.P. 1986. The Systems Approach. An Interface Between Development and Population Genetic Aspects of Evolution. In: Raup D.M. and Jablonski D. (eds), Patterns and Processes in the History of Life. Springer-Verlag, Berlin, pp. 149–165.
Wagner G.P. 1989a. The Biological Homology Concept. Annual Review of Ecology and Systematics 20: 51–69.
Wagner G.P. 1989b. The Origin of Morphological Characters and the Biological Basis of Homology. Evolution 43: 1157–1171.
Wagner G.P. 1994. Homology and the Mechanisms of Development. In: Hall B.K. (ed.), Homology: The Hierarchical Basis of Comparative Biology. Academic Press, San Diego, pp. 273–299.
Wagner G.P. 1996. Homologues, Natural Kinds and the Evolution of Modularity. Am. Zool. 36: 36–43.
Wagner G.P. and Misof B.Y. 1993. How Can a Character Be Developmentally Constrained Despite Variation in Developmental Pathways? J. Evol. Biol. 6: 449–455.
Wake D.B. 1994. Comparative Terminology. Science 265: 268–269.
Webster G. 1984. The Relation of Natural Forms. In: Ho M.-W. and Saunders P.T. (eds), Beyond Neo-Darwinism: An Introduction to the New Evolutioary Paradigm. Academic Press, London, pp. 193–217.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Brigandt, I. Homology and the origin of correspondence. Biology & Philosophy 17, 389–407 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1020196124917
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1020196124917