English

Fixation probabilities for multi-allele Moran dynamics with weak selection

Populations and Evolution 2026-04-15 v1 Statistical Mechanics

Abstract

Fixation probabilities are essential for characterizing stochastic evolutionary dynamics, but analytical results remain limited mainly to systems with two competing types. We develop a perturbative framework to compute fixation probabilities in multi-allele Moran processes under weak selection. Exploiting the general structure of the backward Fokker-Planck operator in this regime, we show that fixation probabilities admit a systematic expansion around their neutral solution. We first introduce the framework in a general case with MM competing alleles and arbitrary fitness functions, and then apply it to three biologically motivated examples: a simple model of three competing alleles with a constant fitness function, a coordination game in which allele fitness increases with its frequency in the population, and a model of clonal interference between mutualistic alleles. These results extend the analytical understanding of fixation probabilities beyond pairwise interactions, establishing a framework for investigating multi-strategy stochastic evolutionary dynamics.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.2604.12004,
  title  = {Fixation probabilities for multi-allele Moran dynamics with weak selection},
  author = {Ian Braga and Lucas Wardil and Ricardo Martinez-Garcia},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2604.12004},
  year   = {2026}
}

Comments

11 pages, 3 figures

R2 v1 2026-07-01T12:07:31.856Z