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Undermining the Baldwin expediting effect: does phenotypic plasticity accelerate evolution?

L W Ancel1

  • 1Department of Biology, Emory University, 1510 Clifton Road, Atlanta, Georgia 30322, USA. lancel@emory.edu

Theoretical Population Biology
|February 13, 2001
PubMed
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Phenotypic plasticity does not always accelerate evolution. The Baldwin expediting effect is dependent on specific fitness functions and starting conditions, and does not guarantee increased evolutionary success.

Area of Science:

  • Evolutionary biology
  • Theoretical biology
  • Genetics

Background:

  • The Baldwin effect proposes that phenotypic plasticity can accelerate evolution.
  • A recent interpretation, termed the Baldwin expediting effect, suggests plasticity speeds evolution towards a target phenotype.
  • Existing models often assume simplified, extreme fitness landscapes.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the role of phenotypic plasticity in evolutionary rates.
  • To differentiate the Baldwin expediting effect from earlier Baldwin effect concepts.
  • To determine if phenotypic plasticity universally facilitates evolution or increases fitness.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized two distinct evolutionary modeling frameworks.
  • Simulated populations under varying fitness functions and initial conditions.

Related Experiment Videos

  • Analyzed the impact of phenotypic plasticity on the rate of evolution.

    • Main Results:

    • The influence of plasticity on evolutionary rate is contingent on the fitness function.
    • Population starting conditions significantly affect the outcome of plasticity-mediated evolution.
    • The Baldwin expediting effect was observed only under specific, extreme fitness scenarios.

    Conclusions:

    • Phenotypic plasticity does not universally accelerate evolutionary trajectories.
    • The Baldwin expediting effect is not a general phenomenon and depends heavily on environmental and genetic context.
    • Observed evolutionary acceleration via plasticity does not necessarily correlate with enhanced fitness or explain evolutionary success.