Commentary Article - Journal of Evolutionary Medicine ( 2022) Volume 10, Issue 3

A Transformation and Novelty in Chronic Disease Mismatching

Carsten Wrosch*
 
Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Nanjing Medical University, China
 
*Corresponding Author:
Carsten Wrosch, Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Nanjing Medical University, China, Email: carsten.wrosch@concordia.ca

Received: 02-Mar-2022, Manuscript No. jem-22-62245 ;;Accepted Date: Mar 23, 2022; Editor assigned: 04-Mar-2022, Pre QC No. jem-22-62245 (PQ); Reviewed: 18-Mar-2022, QC No. jem-22-62245 ; Revised: 23-Mar-2022, Manuscript No. jem-22-62245 (R); Published: 30-Mar-2022, DOI: 10.4303/jem/236052

Commentary

Mismatch theory, also known as evolutionary trap, is a concept in evolutionary biology that refers to evolved traits that were once advantageous but became maladaptive due to environmental changes. This can occur in both humans and animals and is frequently attributed to rapid environmental change. The idea behind mismatch theory is that traits that evolved in an organism in one environment can be detrimental in another. This environmental change that leads to evolutionary mismatch can be classified into two types: temporal (changes in the existing environment over time, such as climate change) and spatial (placing organisms into a new environment, e.g. a population migrating).Because environmental change occurs naturally and constantly, there will undoubtedly be examples of evolutionary mismatch over time. However, because large-scale natural environmental change – such as a natural disaster – is often rare, it is less frequently observed. Anthropogenic environmental change is another type that is more common (human-caused). Humans have recently had a large, rapid, and trackable impact on our environment, creating scenarios in which evolutionary mismatch is easier to detect. The environment determines which traits will persist in a population due to the mechanism of natural selection. As a result, as the population becomes more adapted to its environment, disadvantageous traits will be gradually weeded out over several generations.Natural selection is inherently reactive because any significant change in a population’s traits that cannot be attributed to other factors will be responsive to a change in that population’s environment. Shortly after an environmental change, traits that evolved in the previous environment, whether advantageous or neutral, persist in the new environment for several generations. As a result, because food was scarce, filling their stomachs with a lot of food was advantageous. Intense consumption of high-energy foods was chosen for times when food was scarce and difficult to come by. Food is now readily available, and the neurological system that once assisted people in recognising the survival benefits of essential eating has now become detrimental as it promotes obesity.The hatchlings rely on their eyes to turn towards the brightest direction in order to orient themselves towards the ocean. This is because the open horizon of the ocean, illuminated by celestial light, tends to be much brighter than the dunes and vegetation in a natural undeveloped beach. This method of finding the ocean works well on natural beaches, but on developed beaches, the intense artificial lights from buildings, lighthouses, and even abandoned fires overwhelm the sea turtles, causing them to head towards the artificial light rather than the ocean. Scientists refer to this as misorientation. Sea turtles can also become disoriented and circle in the same spot.This problem is exacerbated by the fact that all sea turtle species are endangered. Other animals, such as migratory birds and insects, are also affected by light pollution because they rely on the intensity of light at night to properly orient themselves. Normally, gaining information from observing other organisms allows the observer to make sound decisions without exerting too much effort. Birds, in particular, frequently observe the behaviour of other organisms in order to gain valuable information, such as the presence of predators, good breeding sites, and optimal feeding locations. Although this allows the observer to spend less time gathering information, it can also lead to poor decisions if the information obtained through observation is untrustworthy.This, however, is predicated on the assumption that the observed mannikins also had reliable information indicating that the feeding spot was ideal. This behaviour can become maladaptive when prioritising information gained from watching others leads to information cascades in which birds follow the rest of the crowd despite prior experience indicating that the crowd’s decision is poor.

For example, if a nutmeg mannikin observes a large number of mannikins feeding at a feeder, nutmeg mannikins have been shown to choose that feeder even if their personal experience indicates that the feeder is subpar.

Acknowledgment

None

Conflict of Interest

None

Copyright: © 2022 Carsten Wrosch. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.