Supernova and multi-supernova events are known to regulate several structural properties of dwarf galaxies. In particular, they govern the metal enrichment and the energy budget of the ISM of the galaxy; they could induce partial (blow-out) or total (blow-away) gas removal in a wind. Besides, they regulate the pressure of the ISM and consequently the shape of the main gaseous body of the parent galaxy.

The presence of significant amounts of dark matter may play an even more important role. As a general rule, the gravitational potential corresponding to the dark matter tends to concentrate the baryonic components towards the center, thus increasing both the star formation rate and the metal production.

I will present detailed analytical/numerical models describing the evolution of dwarf galaxies, which among other results, provide a cosmological scenario for the formation the various types of dwarf galaxies observed (dIrrs, dEs, BCDs...). The main results that I will discuss are the following:

1. The metallicities of dwarfs are found to correlate tightly with the dark matter content
2. They are consistent with dark/visible mass ratios between 0 and 10
3. We predict the existence of a class of "aborted" galaxies which are the result of blow-away phenomena occurring at high redshifts
4. Winds are not important for the evolution of the metal content of dwarf galaxies; however, dwarfs with masses ~10^8 Msun are shown to be very important pollutors of the IGM.