Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Comment
  • Published:

Outstanding research opportunities at the interface of evolution and medicine

Nature Ecology & Evolution volume 2, pages 3–4 (2018)Cite this article

Subjects

Evolutionary medicine is a research frontier whose promise has only partially been realized. Here I discuss the advances that have built its foundation and point to where progress is most needed.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

  • Purchase on Springer Link
  • Instant access to full article PDF
Buy now

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

References

  1. Stearns, S. C. & Medzhitov, R. Evolutionary Medicine (Sinauer, Sunderland, 2015).

  2. Byars, S. G. et al. Proc. Natl Acad. Sci. USA 107, 1787–1792 (2010).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  3. Ross-Gillespie, A. et al. Am. Nat. 170, 331–342 (2007).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. Ross-Gillespie, A. et al. Evol. Med. Public Health 2014, eou003–29 (2014).

    Google Scholar 

  5. Allen, R. C. et al. Nat. Rev. Microbiol. 12, 300–308 (2014).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. Chan, B. K. et al. Sci. Rep 6, 1–8 (2016).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Sharp, P. M. & Hahn, B. H. Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B 365, 2487–2494 (2010).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  8. Smith, G. J. D. et al. Nature 459, 1122–1126 (2009).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Zhao, Z.-M. et al. Proc. Natl Acad. Sci. USA 113, 2140–2145 (2016).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. Hill, A. V. S. Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B 367, 840–849 (2012).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  11. Meyer, U. A., Zanger, U. M. & Schwab, M. Annu. Rev. Pharmacol. Toxicol. 53, 475–502 (2013).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  12. Tishkoff, S. A. et al. Nat. Genet. 39, 31–40 (2007).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. Byars, S. G. et al. PLoS Genet. 13, e1006328 (2017).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. Emera, D., Romero, R. & Wagner, G. BioEssays 34, 26–35 (2011).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  15. Hanson, M. A. & Gluckman, P. D. Physiol. Rev. 94, 1027–1076 (2014).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  16. Kuzawa, C. W. & Quinn, E. A. Annu. Rev. Anthropol. 38, 131–147 (2009).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  17. Read, A., Day, T. & Huijben, S. Proc. Natl Acad. Sci. USA 108(Suppl. 2)., 10871–10877 (2011).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  18. Lynch, V. J. et al. Nat. Genet. 43, 1154–1159 (2011).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  19. Haig, D. Annu. Rev. Genet. 38, 553–585 (2004).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, Box 208106, New Haven, CT, 06520, USA

    Stephen C. Stearns

Authors
  1. Stephen C. Stearns
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Stephen C. Stearns.

Ethics declarations

Competing interests

The author declares no competing financial interests.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Stearns, S.C. Outstanding research opportunities at the interface of evolution and medicine. Nat Ecol Evol 2, 3–4 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-017-0409-y

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-017-0409-y

Search

Advanced search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing