Molecular Evolution, Functional Synthesis of

The Functional Synthesis uses molecular biology experiments to test evolutionary hypotheses derived from comparative sequence analyses. Work within the Functional Synthesis has determined the phenotypes of ancient proteins, the functional consequences of ancient amino acid replacements, the selective causes of ancient adaptations, the origins and consequences of molecular epistasis, the origins of novel phenotypes, and the mechanisms underlying gene duplication and functional divergence. The Functional Synthesis continues to be a powerful approach to exploring fundamental questions in evolutionary biology.