[Equilibrium between genetic drift and migration at various mutation rates: simulation analysis]

Area of Science:

• Population genetics
• Evolutionary biology
• Molecular evolution

Context:

• Investigating genetic drift and gene flow is crucial for understanding population structure.
• Migration models, such as the island and stepping stone models, are fundamental to population genetics.
• Mutation models, including the K-allele model (KAM) and stepwise mutation model (SMM), describe genetic variation over time.

Purpose:

• To numerically analyze the rates of approach to equilibrium values of F(ST) and R(ST) under varying mutation rates and models.
• To compare the influence of mutation rates and migration models on genetic differentiation.
• To assess the robustness of R(ST) to different mutation models.

Summary:

• Simulations revealed that in the island model with KAM, F(ST) equilibrium is reached faster and at a lower value when mutation rate (μ) equals migration rate (m) compared to μ << m.
• The mutation rate significantly affected F(ST) equilibrium rates and values in the one-dimensional stepping stone model with KAM.
• R(ST) was insensitive to mutation rates in both models and mutation types, while F(ST) and R(ST) approached equilibrium slower in stepping stone models than island models.

Impact:

• Provides insights into how mutation rates and migration patterns shape genetic diversity.
• Highlights the differential behavior of F(ST) and R(ST) under various evolutionary scenarios.
• Suggests R(ST) may be a more robust estimator of genetic differentiation when mutation models are uncertain.