Metamorphosis is a biologically regulated developmental process in which an organism undergoes a marked, genetically programmed reorganization of morphology, physiology, and often ecology between early and adult life stages. It is classically characterized in holometabolous insects, amphibians, and some marine invertebrates, where endocrine signaling (e.g., ecdysteroids, juvenile hormone, thyroid hormones) orchestrates cell proliferation, apoptosis, tissue remodeling, and organ differentiation. Metamorphosis often separates larval and adult niches, optimizing resource use and dispersal. At the research level, it serves as a model for studying hormone-driven gene regulatory networks, developmental timing, phenotypic plasticity, and evolutionary transitions between life-history strategies.
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