Funds are requested for a one day symposium entitled "Development and Evolution of the Vertebrate Head". This symposium, sponsored by the American Society of Zoology's Division of Developmental and Cell Biology and co-sponsored by the Division of Vertebrate Morphology will be held as part of the Society's 1991 annual meeting in Atlanta, Georgia. The goal of this symposium is to develop a stronger understanding of the special role of development in evolution by focusing on a single topic, the vertebrate head. To accomplish this goal, the organizers will bring together biologists from a wide range of fields, all of whom are actively pursuing research into one or more areas of developmental and/or evolutionary biology of the vertebrate head. Among the invited speakers are both world renowned experts and some of the most promising young investigators in this field. Their topics span from functional morphology and evolution, through morphological and experimental embryology, cell/tissue culture to molecular analysis providing comprehensive inclusion of the various 'levels' at which the development of the vertebrate head is studied. With this wide range of experts, focusing on a single issue, the vertebrate head, this symposium will be able to synthesize a more fundamental understanding of the relationship of development and evolution. Proceedings of the symposium, which will be published either by American Zoologist or is a separate book volume, will provide students and scientists with an interest in development and evolution, a timely and insightful synthesis on our current understanding of the interrelationships of these two biological fields and will provide a useful reference source for future studies for many years to come.
