Mihaela Pavličev
Univ.-Prof. Mag. Dr.
Deputy Head of the Department of Evolutionary Biology
Head of the Unit for Theoretical Biology
phone +43-1-4277-56700
mihaela.pavlicev@univie.ac.at
About me
My foremost interest is in the organismal features that enable evolvability of complex organisms. To understand phenotypic evolution, we need to understand what patterns of heritable phenotypic variation the developmental/physiological systems are able to produce, what are the consequences of specific patterns of variation over short terms (population genetic scale) and long terms (species divergence observed in comparative biology) under selection and drift, and how the patterns of variation themselves evolve.
One recurring evolutionary phenomenon is the decoupling of variation between traits, and subsequent individuation of parts and the origin of new biological units. In this context, my work pertains to the role of pleiotropy and interactions in this process.
I pursue these questions of evolvability and individuation in theory as well as in empirical work on the evolution of limbs and of the mammalian female reproductive system.
Publications
2018
Kennedy, J., & Pavličev, M. (2018). Female orgasm and the emergence of prosocial empathy: An evo-devo perspective. Journal of Experimental Zoology Part B: Molecular and Developmental Evolution, 330(2), 66-75. https://doi.org/10.1002/jez.b.22795
Pavlicev, M., & Norwitz, E. R. (2018). Human Parturition: Nothing More Than a Delayed Menstruation. Reproductive Sciences (RS), 25(2), 166-173. https://doi.org/10.1177/1933719117725830
2017
Mitteroecker, P., Windhager, S., & Pavlicev, M. (2017). Cliff-edge model predicts intergenerational predisposition to dystocia and Caesarean delivery. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America (PNAS), 114(44), 11669-11672. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1712203114
Mitteroecker, P., Huttegger, S. M., Fischer, B., & Pavlicev, M. (2017). Reply to Grossman: The role of natural selection for the increase of Caesarean section rates. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America (PNAS), 114(8), Article E1305. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1621176114
Pavličev, M., Wagner, G. P., Chavan, A. R., Owens, K., Maziarz, J., Dunn-Fletcher, C., Kallapur, S. G., Muglia, L., & Jones, H. (2017). Single-cell transcriptomics of the human placenta: inferring the cell communication network of the maternal-fetal interface. Genome Research, 27(3), 349-361. https://doi.org/10.1101/gr.207597.116
Simonti, C. N., Pavlicev, M., & Capra, J. A. (2017). Transposable Element Exaptation into Regulatory Regions Is Rare, Influenced by Evolutionary Age, and Subject to Pleiotropic Constraints. Molecular Biology and Evolution, 34(11), 2856-2869. https://doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msx219
Wagner, G. P., & Pavličev, M. (2017). Origin, Function, and Effects of Female Orgasm: All Three are Different. Journal of Experimental Zoology Part B: Molecular and Developmental Evolution, 328(4), 299-303. https://doi.org/10.1002/jez.b.22737
Zhang, G., Feenstra, B., Bacelis, J., Liu, X., Muglia, L. M., Juodakis, J., Miller, D. E., Litterman, N., Jiang, P. P., Russell, L., Hinds, D. A., Hu, Y., Weirauch, M. T., Chen, X., Chavan, A. R., Wagner, G. P., Pavličev, M., Nnamani, M. C., Maziarz, J., ... Muglia, L. J. (2017). Genetic Associations with Gestational Duration and Spontaneous Preterm Birth. New England Journal of Medicine, 377(12), 1156-1167. https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMoa1612665
2016
Arendt, D., Musser, J. M., Baker, C. V. H., Bergman, A., Cepko, C., Erwin, D. H., Pavlicev, M., Schlosser, G., Widder, S., Laubichler, M. D., & Wagner, G. P. (2016). The origin and evolution of cell types. Nature Reviews. Genetics, 17(12), 744-757. https://doi.org/10.1038/nrg.2016.127
Eidem, H. R., Rinker, D. C., Ackerman, W. E., Buhimschi, I. A., Buhimschi, C. S., Dunn-Fletcher, C., Kallapur, S. G., Pavličev, M., Muglia, L. J., Abbot, P., & Rokas, A. (2016). Comparing human and macaque placental transcriptomes to disentangle preterm birth pathology from gestational age effects. Placenta, 41, 74-82. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.placenta.2016.03.006
Gonzalez, P. N., Pavlicev, M., Mitteroecker, P., Pardo-Manuel de Villena, F., Spritz, R. A., Marcucio, R. S., & Hallgrímsson, B. (2016). Genetic structure of phenotypic robustness in the collaborative cross mouse diallel panel. Journal of Evolutionary Biology, 29(9), 1737-1751. https://doi.org/10.1111/jeb.12906
Kin, K., Maziarz, J., Chavan, A. R., Kamat, M., Vasudevan, S., Birt, A., Emera, D., Lynch, V. J., Ott, T. L., Pavlicev, M., & Wagner, G. P. (2016). The Transcriptomic Evolution of Mammalian Pregnancy: Gene Expression Innovations in Endometrial Stromal Fibroblasts. Genome Biology and Evolution, 8(8), 2459-2473. https://doi.org/10.1093/gbe/evw168
Mitteroecker, P., Huttegger, S. M., Fischer, B., & Pavlicev, M. (2016). Cliff-edge model of obstetric selection in humans. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America (PNAS), 113(51), 14680-14685. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1612410113
Mitteroecker, P., Cheverud, J. M., & Pavlicev, M. (2016). Multivariate Analysis of Genotype-Phenotype Association. Genetics: a periodical record of investigations bearing on heredity and variation, 202(4), 1345-1363. https://doi.org/10.1534/genetics.115.181339
Pavličev, M., Mitteroecker, P., Gonzalez, P. M., Rolian, C., Jamniczky, H., Villena, F. P. M., Marcucio, R., Spritz, R., & Hallgrimsson, B. (2016). Development Shapes a Consistent Inbreeding Effect in Mouse Crania of Different Line Crosses. Journal of Experimental Zoology Part B: Molecular and Developmental Evolution, 326(8), 474-488. https://doi.org/10.1002/jez.b.22722
Pavličev, M., & Wagner, G. (2016). The Evolutionary Origin of Female Orgasm. Journal of Experimental Zoology Part B: Molecular and Developmental Evolution, 326(6), 326-337. https://doi.org/10.1002/jez.b.22690
2015
Pavlicev, M., Hiratsuka, K., Swaggart, K. A., Dunn, C., & Muglia, L. (2015). Detecting endogenous retrovirus-driven tissue-specific gene transcription. Genome Biology and Evolution, 7(4), 1082-1097. https://doi.org/10.1093/gbe/evv049
Pavlicev, M., & Widder, S. (2015). Wiring for Independence: Positive Feedback Motifs Facilitate Individuation of Traits in Development and Evolution. Journal of Experimental Zoology Part B: Molecular and Developmental Evolution, 324(2), 104-113. https://doi.org/10.1002/jez.b.22612
Swaggart, K. A., Pavlicev, M., & Muglia, L. J. (2015). Genomics of preterm birth. In Cold Spring Harbor Perspectives in Medicine (2 ed., Vol. 5, pp. a023127) https://doi.org/10.1101/cshperspect.a023127
2014
Wagner, G. P., Kin, K., Muglia, L., & Pavlicev, M. (2014). Evolution of mammalian pregnancy and the origin of the decidual stromal cell. The International Journal of Developmental Biology, 58(2-4), 117-126. https://doi.org/10.1387/ijdb.130335gw