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Related Concept Videos

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...
Evolution of New Traits in Microbes01:24

Evolution of New Traits in Microbes

Microorganisms evolve rapidly due to their large population sizes and short generation times, often exhibiting measurable changes within days under laboratory conditions. Natural selection acts on standing genetic variation, enabling the retention and amplification of beneficial traits that confer fitness advantages in changing environments.Adaptive Pigment Regulation in RhodobacterIn Rhodobacter, a genus of purple non-sulfur bacteria, light-harvesting pigments such as bacteriochlorophyll and...
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...
Frequency-dependent Selection01:21

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...
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...
Natural Selection and Mating Preferences01:06

Natural Selection and Mating Preferences

The principle of natural selection posits that organisms better adapted to their environment are more likely to survive and reproduce. This principle is closely intertwined with mating preferences, a key aspect of sexual selection, which evolutionary psychologists believe is driven by instincts to propagate one's genes. Such instincts significantly influence mating behaviors and preferences between genders.
Females, due to their biological roles in conception, pregnancy, and nursing, inherently...

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Daily Transfers, Archiving Populations, and Measuring Fitness in the Long-Term Evolution Experiment with Escherichia coli
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Daily Transfers, Archiving Populations, and Measuring Fitness in the Long-Term Evolution Experiment with Escherichia coli

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On measuring selection in experimental evolution.

Luis-Miguel Chevin1

  • 1Division of Biology, Imperial College London, Ascot SL5 7PY, UK. chevin@imperial.ac.uk

Biology Letters
|September 3, 2010
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Comparing mutation fitness effects across species requires standardized methods. Scaling Malthusian fitness by generation time allows accurate selection coefficient comparisons in evolutionary biology studies.

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Mutagenesis and Functional Selection Protocols for Directed Evolution of Proteins in E. coli
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Area of Science:

  • Evolutionary biology
  • Population genetics

Background:

  • Distributions of mutation fitness effects are increasingly studied across species.
  • Inconsistent definitions of fitness effects and selection coefficients hinder cross-study comparisons.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To address inconsistencies in defining and comparing mutation fitness effects across studies.
  • To propose a standardized method for comparing selection coefficients.

Main Methods:

  • Critique of using ratios of Malthusian growth rates as relative fitness.
  • Proposal for scaling Malthusian fitness by generation time for accurate comparisons.
  • Discussion of density and frequency dependence in selection experiments.

Main Results:

  • Ratios of Malthusian growth rates lead to incorrect inference of selection strength.
  • Scaling Malthusian fitness by generation time provides accurate selection coefficients.
  • ln2 is a suitable correction factor for species with binary fission.

Conclusions:

  • Standardized reporting of growth rate and generation time is crucial for comparing mutation fitness effects.
  • Accurate comparison of selection coefficients across species is achievable with standardized methods.
  • Understanding density and frequency dependence is vital for interpreting selection experiments.