James Shapiro - What Can Evolutionary Biology Learn from Cancer Biology?

About this video

• Video Title: James Shapiro - What Can Evolutionary Biology Learn from Cancer Biology?
• Channel: Cancer & Evolution
• Speakers: James Shapiro
• Duration: 00:28:58

Overview

This video explores how cancer biology can offer valuable insights to evolutionary biology. James Shapiro discusses cancer progression as a form of somatic evolution and highlights two key lessons for evolutionary biology: the existence of distinct classes of rapid genomic reorganizations in eukaryotic cells, and the fact that these reorganizations stem from dedicated biological capabilities, suggesting they are potential sources of evolutionary change.

Key takeaways

• Cancer as Somatic Evolution: Cancer progression is presented as a form of somatic evolution that has gone awry in the body's cells.
• Genomic Reorganizations: Cancer involves distinct classes of multi-site chromosome reorganizations that can occur rapidly within genomes.
• Evolutionary Capabilities: These reorganizations are driven by inherent biological capabilities present in eukaryotic cells, indicating their potential as drivers of evolutionary change.
• Macroevolution vs. Microevolution: The talk distinguishes between microevolution (gradual adaptation through accumulating mutations) and macroevolution (rapid, punctuated changes involving chromosome restructuring), positing cancer as a disease of macroevolution.
• Chromothrypsis and Chromoplexy: Two specific patterns of rapid, non-random genome reorganization observed in cancer cells, "chromothrypsis" (chromosome shattering) and "chromoplexy" (chromosome weaving), are discussed as evidence of organized cellular activity.
• Polyploidy and Stress Response: Polyploidy and endoreplication are identified as ancient eukaryotic responses to stress, including DNA damage and wounding, which can lead to massive genome rearrangements and contribute to tumor development.
• Cancer Evolution Informing Organismal Evolution: The study of cancer evolution is providing new perspectives on how rapid evolutionary change occurs in organisms, potentially explaining phenomena like evolutionary radiations after catastrophic events.