Next Steps in Integrative Biology: Mapping Interactive Processes Across Levels of Biological Organization

Author/Creator ORCID

Date

2021-07-14

Department

Program

Citation of Original Publication

Cavigelli, Sonia et al.; Next Steps in Integrative Biology: Mapping Interactive Processes Across Levels of Biological Organization; Integrative and Comparative Biology, icab161, 14 July, 2021; https://doi.org/10.1093/icb/icab161

Rights

This is a pre-copyedited, author-produced version of an article accepted for publication in Integrative and Comparative Biology following peer review. The version of record Cavigelli, Sonia et al.; Next Steps in Integrative Biology: Mapping Interactive Processes Across Levels of Biological Organization; Integrative and Comparative Biology, icab161, 14 July, 2021; https://doi.org/10.1093/icb/icab161 is available online at: https://academic.oup.com/icb/advance-article-abstract/doi/10.1093/icb/icab161/6321168.
Access to this item will begin on 2022-07-14

Subjects

Abstract

Emergent biological processes result from complex interactions within and across levels of biological organization, ranging from molecular to environmental dynamics. Powerful theories, database tools, and modeling methods have been designed to characterize network connections within levels, such as those among genes, proteins, biochemicals, cells, organisms and species. Here, we propose that developing integrative models of organismal function in complex environments can be facilitated by taking advantage of these methods to identify key nodes of communication across levels of organization. Mapping key drivers or connections among levels of organization will provide data and leverage to model potential rule-sets by which organisms respond and adjust to perturbations at any level of biological organization.