#1272 Arvid Ågren & Manus Patten: The Paradox of the Organism
Dr. Arvid Ågren is Assistant Professor at the Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine at Case Western Reserve University. At the Cleveland Clinic, he is affiliated with the Theory Division at the Lerner Research Institute. He is also an Affiliated Researcher at the Evolutionary Biology Centre at Uppsala University. He is the author of The Gene’s-Eye View of Evolution.
Dr. Manus Patten is Teaching Professor in the Department of Biology at Georgetown University. His main interests are genetic conflicts, adaptation, and the levels of selection. He teaches courses in evolution, ecology, and genetics.
They are editors of The Paradox of the Organism: Adaptation and Internal Conflict.
In this episode, we focus on The Paradox of the Organism. We start by discussing what the paradox of the organism is. We explore the notions of organism, conflict in evolutionary biology, multilevel selection, individuality, internal conflicts, organisms as unified agents, and organisms as ecosystems. We talk about how internal conflicts might get expressed in different pathologies, with a focus on cancer. Finally, we discuss the body-as-machine approach in medicine and its limitations, and whether genetic conflicts can get expressed on a psychological level.
Time Links:
Intro
What is the paradox of the organism?
What is an organism?
Conflict, and how the interests of different genes align
Multilevel selection, and conflict between levels of selection
Individuality
Internal conflicts
Organisms as unified agents
Organisms as ecosystems
Internal conflicts and pathology
The body-as-machine approach in medicine and its limitations
Can genetic conflicts get expressed on a psychological level?
Follow Drs. Ågren and Patten’s work!
The Paradox of the Organism: https://tinyurl.com/5bm74b25
Follow Dr. Ågren’s work:
Website: https://bit.ly/3oJZA3I
ResearchGate profile: https://bit.ly/2WUPmSD
The Gene’s-Eye View of Evolution: https://amzn.to/3iLgKKq
Twitter handle: @arvidagren
Follow Dr. Patten’s work:
Faculty page: https://tinyurl.com/3maxbdxh
Patton Lab: https://www.pattenlab.com/