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Virus Evolution on Fitness Landscapes.
Peter Schuster1, Peter F Stadler2,3
1Institut für Theoretische Chemie der Universität Wien, Währingerstraße 17, 1090, Wien, Austria. pks@tbi.univie.ac.at.
Current Topics in Microbiology and Immunology
|January 2, 2023
Summary
Evolutionary fitness landscapes, particularly RNA models, reveal that neutral networks are crucial for genetic evolution. Understanding landscape topology and error thresholds is key to deciphering molecular quasispecies dynamics and virus evolution.
Area of Science:
- Evolutionary biology
- Molecular evolution
- Systems biology
Background:
- The landscape paradigm provides a framework for understanding evolutionary processes.
- Fitness landscapes map genotype or phenotype to reproductive success.
- Previous models have limitations in comprehensive molecular analysis.
Purpose of the Study:
- To revisit the landscape paradigm using simple evolutionary systems.
- To analyze the RNA model as a comprehensive molecular fitness landscape.
- To explore the role of neutral networks and landscape topology in evolution.
Main Methods:
- Overview of different fitness landscape classes.
- Detailed discussion of the RNA molecular fitness landscape model.
- Analysis of sequence and shape space topology.
- Consideration of molecular quasispecies dynamics.
- Review of empirical landscapes.
Main Results:
- Neutral networks are essential for successful evolution.
- Landscape topology of sequence and shape spaces offers evolutionary insights.
- Population structures mirror fitness value distributions.
- Two critical error thresholds identified: genotypic and phenotypic.
Conclusions:
- The RNA model enables detailed molecular fitness landscape analysis.
- Neutral networks and topology are vital for evolutionary mechanisms.
- Error thresholds dictate the transition from ordered replication to random drift and phenotype loss.
- The landscape concept has significant implications for understanding virus evolution.
Keywords:
AccessibilityError thresholdFitness landscapesGenotype-phenotype mapsMolecular evolutionNeutral networksPhenomenological approachQuasispeciesRNA modelSelective neutralitySequence spaceShape spaceShape space topologyVirus evolutionMore Related Videos
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