Reorganization of functional systems in ontogenesis

Abstract

This paper presents data that many mechanisms functioning at a certain stage of development are eliminated from the systemic organization at the subsequent stage of ontogeny. A new point of view on the principles of function formation in ontogeny is proposed. It is based on the fact that in the process of development (embryonic period, early postnatal period, transition to an independent existence, etc.) the subjective structure of the external world changes, therefore adaptation at a certain stage of ontogeny implies creation of another system of function regulation, which provides survival of the organism under new conditions. This becomes possible owing to a reorganization of the functional systems of the organism, including formation of new mechanisms and elimination of everything from the behavioral repertoire, which had lost its adaptive importance at the given stage of ontogeny. Such reorganization is comparable with formation of a new species in the process of evolution (a transition to another ecological niche). To characterize principles of the transition from one stage of ontogeny to another and to emphasize certain common features of the evolutionary and ontogenetic processes, it is suggested to use the term “ontogenetic niche.”