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Related Experiment Video

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Continuous Measurement of Biological Noise in Escherichia Coli Using Time-lapse Microscopy
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How does evolution tune biological noise?

Magali Richard1, Gaël Yvert1

  • 1Laboratoire de Biologie Moléculaire de la Cellule, Ecole Normale Supérieure de Lyon, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique - Université de Lyon Lyon, France.

Frontiers in Genetics
|November 13, 2014
PubMed
Summary

Biological noise, a source of variation in traits, is genetically controlled and can be acted upon by natural selection. This review explores how mutations affecting biological noise may evolve through negative, neutral, or positive selection.

Keywords:
bet-hedgingevolutionnucleosomephenotypic bufferingstochasticity

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Area of Science:

  • Evolutionary biology
  • Genetics
  • Molecular biology

Background:

  • Phenotypic variation arises from molecular and cellular differences, influenced by biological noise.
  • Advances in dynamic imaging and single-cell analysis reveal biological noise as a significant source of variation.
  • The genotype-phenotype link is not deterministic; mutations can alter biochemical reaction properties and trait outcomes.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review evidence that biological noise is under genetic control and thus subject to evolutionary selection.
  • To explore the potential for negative, neutral, and positive selection acting on mutations that increase biological noise.
  • To hypothesize on the role of specific factors like H2A.Z in modulating phenotypic noise and transcriptional efficiency.

Main Methods:

  • Literature review of studies on biological noise, genetic control, and evolutionary selection.
  • Analysis of mutation effects on biochemical reaction statistics and trait probabilities.
  • Hypothetical case study on H2A.Z's role in noise buffering and transcriptional modulation.

Main Results:

  • Biological noise is demonstrably under genetic control, making it an evolutionary substrate.
  • Mutations can modulate phenotypic noise, influencing trait outcome probabilities.
  • Selection may act on mutations that increase biological noise through negative, neutral, or positive mechanisms.

Conclusions:

  • Biological noise is a heritable trait that can evolve.
  • Understanding selection pressures on biological noise is crucial for comprehending evolutionary processes.
  • H2A.Z presents a specific example of a factor influencing both noise buffering and transcriptional regulation.