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Related Concept Videos

Limits to Natural Selection01:38

Limits to Natural Selection

Organisms that are well-adapted to their environment are more likely to survive and reproduce. However, natural selection does not lead to perfectly adapted organisms. Several factors constrain natural selection.For one, natural selection can only act upon existing genetic variation. Hypothetically, redtusks may enhance elephant survival by deterring ivory-seeking poachers. However, if there are no gene variants—or alleles—for redtusks, natural selection cannot increase the prevalence of...
What is Natural Selection?01:32

What is Natural Selection?

Natural selection is an evolutionary process in which individuals with survival-promoting traits reproduce at higher rates. These favorable traits become more common within a population or species. Naturally selected traits initially arise via random genetic mutations. In order for selection to occur, there must be variation within a population, the trait controlling the variation must be heritable, and there must be an evolutionary advantage for variation in the trait.The Theory of Natural...
Types of Selection01:46

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...
Genetic Drift03:33

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...
Mutation, Gene Flow, and Genetic Drift01:09

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,...
Genetics of Speciation02:16

Genetics of Speciation

Speciation is the evolutionary process resulting in the formation of new, distinct species—groups of reproductively isolated populations.The genetics of speciation involves the different traits or isolating mechanisms preventing gene exchange, leading to reproductive isolation. Reproductive isolation can be due to reproductive barriers that have effects either before or after the formation of a zygote. Pre-zygotic mechanisms prevent fertilization from occurring, and post-zygotic mechanisms...

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Related Experiment Video

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Following the Dynamics of Structural Variants in Experimentally Evolved Populations
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Measuring natural selection on genotypes and phenotypes in the wild.

C R Linnen1, H E Hoekstra

  • 1Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology and Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA.

Cold Spring Harbor Symposia on Quantitative Biology
|April 24, 2010
PubMed
Summary

Understanding natural selection requires measuring its strength in the wild. This review examines methods for quantifying selection across DNA, populations, and traits to reveal the adaptive process.

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Area of Science:

  • Evolutionary biology
  • Population genetics

Background:

  • Accurate estimation of natural selection strength is crucial for understanding evolutionary change.
  • Various methods exist to quantify selection on genotypes and phenotypes in natural populations.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review and illustrate the utility and limitations of different approaches for estimating selection in the wild.
  • To advocate for a comprehensive approach combining multi-level and multi-timescale selection estimates with experimental validation.

Main Methods:

  • Review of existing methodologies for quantifying natural selection.
  • Analysis of DNA variability patterns.
  • Monitoring spatial and temporal allele frequency changes.
  • Estimation of fitness components.
  • Integration of ecological and evolutionary timescales.
  • Incorporation of experimental approaches to validate selection pressures.

Main Results:

  • Multiple methods exist to estimate selection, each with specific applications and limitations.
  • Combining data from DNA variability, allele frequency shifts, and fitness measures provides insights into selection.
  • Integrating selection estimates across different biological levels (mutations to phenotypes) and timescales (ecological to evolutionary) is essential.

Conclusions:

  • A comprehensive understanding of adaptive evolution necessitates integrating selection estimates across multiple levels and timescales.
  • Experimental validation is key to confirming the drivers of selection on specific traits.
  • Combining diverse data and experimental approaches offers a more complete picture of the adaptive process.