Related papers: On the Evolutionary Fate of Mutant Allele at Dupli…
This contribution is concerned with mathematical models for the dynamics of the genetic composition of populations evolving under recombination. Recombination is the genetic mechanism by which two parent individuals create the mixed type of…
In this paper we analyse the genetic evolution of a diploid hermaphroditic population, which is modelled by a three-type nonlinear birth-and-death process with competition and Mendelian reproduction. In a recent paper, Collet et al., 2013…
The introduction and persistence of novel sexually antagonistic alleles can depend upon factors that differ between males and females. Understanding the conditions for invasion in a two-locus model can elucidate these processes. For…
With a view to connecting random mutation on the molecular level to punctuated equilibrium behavior on the phenotype level, we propose a new model for biological evolution, which incorporates random mutation and natural selection. In this…
A fundamental problem in the fields of population genetics, evolution, and community ecology, is the fate of a single mutant, or invader, introduced in a finite population of wild types. For a fixed-size community of $N$ individuals, with…
We investigate evolutionary dynamics of two-strategy matrix games with zealots in finite populations. Zealots are assumed to take either strategy regardless of the fitness. When the strategy selected by the zealots is the same, the fixation…
Commonly recognized evolutionarily relevant effects of sexual reproduction include increased diversity, accelerated adaptation, and constrained accumulation of deleterious mutations, along with a secondary effect of species genotype…
In many models of genotypic evolution, the vector of genotype populations satisfies a system of linear ordinary differential equations. This system of equations models a competition between differential replication rates (fitness) and…
Is evolution always gradual or can it make leaps? We examine a mathematical model of an evolutionary process on a fitness landscape and obtain analytic solutions for the probability of multi-mutation leaps, that is, several mutations…
Mutational robustness quantifies the effect of random mutations on fitness. When mutational robustness is high, most mutations do not change fitness or have only a minor effect on it. From the point of view of fitness landscapes, robust…
When beneficial mutations are relatively common, competition between multiple unfixed mutations can reduce the rate of fixation in well-mixed asexual populations. We introduce a one dimensional model with a steady accumulation of beneficial…
A precise estimate of allele and haplotype polymorphism is of great interest in theoretical population genetics, but also has practical applications, such as bone marrow registries management. Allele polymorphism is driven mainly by point…
The spatial structure of an evolving population affects which mutations become fixed. Some structures amplify selection, increasing the likelihood that beneficial mutations become fixed while deleterious mutations do not. Other structures…
Background: The evolution of microRNA regulation in metazoans is a mysterious process: MicroRNA sequences are highly conserved among distal organisms, but on the other hand, there is no evident conservation of their targets. Results: We…
Biological evolution depends on the passing down to subsequent generations of genetic information encoding beneficial traits, and on the removal of unfit individuals by a selection mechanism. However, selection acts on phenotypes, and is…
The persistence of life requires populations to adapt at a rate commensurate with the dynamics of their environment. Successful populations that inhabit highly variable environments have evolved mechanisms to increase the likelihood of…
When beneficial mutations are rare, they accumulate by a series of selective sweeps. But when they are common, many beneficial mutations will occur before any can fix, so there will be many different mutant lineages in the population…
The fitness contribution of an allele at one genetic site may depend on alleles at other sites, a phenomenon known as epistasis. Epistasis can profoundly influence the process of evolution in populations under selection, and can shape the…
Gene duplication is a fundamental evolutionary mechanism that contributes to biological complexity and diversity (Fortna et al., 2004). Traditionally, research has focused on the duplication of gene sequences (Zhang, 1914). However,…
The regulation of a gene depends on the binding of transcription factors to specific sites located in the regulatory region of the gene. The generation of these binding sites and of cooperativity between them are essential building blocks…