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Frequency-dependent Selection

Frequency-dependent Selection

When the fitness of a trait is influenced by how common it is (i.e., its frequency) relative to different traits within a population, this is referred to as frequency-dependent selection. Frequency-dependent selection may occur between species or within a single species. This type of selection can either be positive—with more common phenotypes having higher fitness—or negative, with rarer phenotypes conferring increased fitness.Positive Frequency-Dependent SelectionIn positive...

Types of Selection

Types of Selection

Natural selection influences the frequencies of particular alleles and phenotypes within populations in several different ways. Primarily, natural selection can be directional, stabilizing, or disruptive. Directional selection favors one extreme trait and shifts the population towards that phenotype while selecting against individuals displaying alternate traits. Stabilizing selection favors an intermediate trait with a narrow range of variation. Deviation from the optimal phenotype towards an...

Mutation, Gene Flow, and Genetic Drift

Mutation, Gene Flow, and Genetic Drift

In a population that is not at Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium, the frequency of alleles changes over time. Therefore, any deviations from the five conditions of Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium can alter the genetic variation of a given population. Conditions that change the genetic variability of a population include mutations, natural selection, non-random mating, gene flow, and genetic drift (small population size).Mechanisms of Genetic VariationThe original sources of genetic variation are mutations,...

Asexual Reproduction

Asexual Reproduction

Asexual reproduction allows plants to reproduce without growing flowers, attracting pollinators, or dispersing seeds. Offspring are genetically identical to the parent and produced without the fusion of male and female gametes.

Gene Flow

Gene Flow

Gene flow is the transfer of genes among populations, resulting from either the dispersal of gametes or from the migration of individuals.

Genetic Drift

Genetic Drift

Natural selection—probably the most well-known evolutionary mechanism—increases the prevalence of traits that enhance survival and reproduction. However, evolution does not merely propagate favorable traits, nor does it always benefit populations.Life is not fair. A deer grazing contentedly in a field can have her meal cut tragically short by a bolt of lightning. If the doomed doe is one of only three in the population, 1/3 of the population’s gene pool is lost. Random events like this can...

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 28, 2026

Determination of the Mating Efficiency of Haploids in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Determination of the Mating Efficiency of Haploids in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Published on: December 2, 2022

Frequency-dependent selection maintains clonal diversity in an asexual organism.

Andrew R Weeks¹, Ary A Hoffmann

¹Centre for Environmental Stress and Adaptation Research, Department of Genetics, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria 3010, Australia. aweeks@unimelb.edu.au

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America

|November 14, 2008

Summary

Genetic diversity persists in asexual organisms through negative frequency-dependent selection. This mechanism, acting on the whole genome, explains how asexual populations maintain variation over time, unlike sexual reproduction.

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Area of Science:

Evolutionary Biology
Population Genetics
Asexual Reproduction

Background:

Asexual organisms exhibit genetic variability and evolve, but the mechanisms maintaining this diversity are unclear.
In sexual species, negative frequency-dependent selection (NFDS) maintains diversity at specific genetic loci.
NFDS's potential role in maintaining broad genetic diversity across the entire genome in asexual populations remains unexplored.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the role of negative frequency-dependent selection (NFDS) in maintaining clonal diversity in asexual populations.
To determine if NFDS can provide a general explanation for persistent genetic diversity in asexual organisms.

Main Methods:

Field manipulations were conducted on an asexual mite species.
The study analyzed the relationship between predicted equilibrium clonal frequencies and observed average frequencies in space and time.

Main Results:

Negative frequency-dependent selection was demonstrated to actively maintain clonal diversity within the studied asexual mite population.
A strong correlation was found between predicted equilibrium clonal frequencies derived from NFDS and the actual average frequencies observed across different spatial and temporal scales.

Conclusions:

Negative frequency-dependent selection is a key mechanism driving the maintenance of genetic diversity in asexual populations.
This finding suggests NFDS may be a general evolutionary strategy for sustaining genetic variation in organisms that reproduce asexually.