Suárez, Javier and Triviño, Vanessa (2019) A metaphysical approach to holobiont individuality: Holobionts as emergent individuals. Quaderns de Filosofia, 6 (1). pp. 59-76.
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Abstract
Holobionts are symbiotic assemblages composed by a host plus its microbiome. The status of holobionts as individuals has recently been a subject of continuous controversy, which has given rise to two main positions: on the one hand, holobiont advocates argue that holobionts are biological individuals; on the other, holobiont detractors argue that they are just mere chimeras or ecological communities, but not individuals. Both parties in the dispute develop their arguments from the framework of the philosophy of biology, in terms of what it takes for a “conglomerate” to be considered an interesting individual from a biological point of view. However, the debates about holobiont individuality have important ontological implications that have remained vaguely explored from a metaphysical framework. The purpose of this paper is to cover that gap by presenting a metaphysical approach to holobionts individuality. Drawing upon a conception of natural selection that puts the focus on the transgenerational recurrence of the traits and that supports the thesis that holobionts are units of selection, we argue that holobionts bear emergent traits and exert downward powers over the entities that compose them. In this vein, we argue, a reasonable argument can be made for conceiving holobionts as emergent biological individuals.
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| Item Type: | Published Article or Volume | |||||||||
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| Keywords: | emergence; holobiont; symbiosis; microbiome; biological individuality; trait-recurrence | |||||||||
| Subjects: | Specific Sciences > Biology Specific Sciences > Biology > Ecology/Conservation Specific Sciences > Biology > Evolutionary Theory General Issues > Reductionism/Holism |
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| Depositing User: | Dr Javier Suárez | |||||||||
| Date Deposited: | 25 May 2019 16:35 | |||||||||
| Last Modified: | 25 May 2019 16:35 | |||||||||
| Item ID: | 16046 | |||||||||
| Journal or Publication Title: | Quaderns de Filosofia | |||||||||
| Publisher: | University of Valencia | |||||||||
| Official URL: | https://ojs.uv.es/index.php/qfilosofia/article/vie... | |||||||||
| DOI or Unique Handle: | https://doi.org/10.7203/qfia.6.1.14825 | |||||||||
| Subjects: | Specific Sciences > Biology Specific Sciences > Biology > Ecology/Conservation Specific Sciences > Biology > Evolutionary Theory General Issues > Reductionism/Holism |
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| Date: | 2019 | |||||||||
| Page Range: | pp. 59-76 | |||||||||
| Volume: | 6 | |||||||||
| Number: | 1 | |||||||||
| URI: | https://philsci-archive.pitt.edu/id/eprint/16046 |
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A metaphysical approach to holobiont individuality: Holobionts as emergent individuals. (deposited 22 Apr 2019 13:37)
- A metaphysical approach to holobiont individuality: Holobionts as emergent individuals. (deposited 25 May 2019 16:35) [Currently Displayed]
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