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Adaptive evolutionary trajectories in complexity: Transitions between unicellularity and facultative differentiated

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Evolutionary pressures can drive unicellular organisms towards multicellularity or cell differentiation. However, continued stress may lead to increased complexity or a return to unicellularity, depending on mutation order and fitness trade-offs.

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Area of Science:

  • Evolutionary biology
  • Theoretical biology
  • Origin of life

Background:

  • Multicellularity ranges from simple cell clusters to complex organisms.
  • Simple multicellularity evolves readily under selective pressures.
  • The evolution of increased multicellular complexity is not well understood.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate adaptive trajectories of unicellular organisms under periodic abiotic stress.
  • To determine conditions favoring multicellularity, cell differentiation, or both.
  • To explore how mutations affect the evolution of complexity.

Main Methods:

  • Mathematical modeling of unicellular populations under periodic stress.
  • Defining a parameter space of fitness-relevant traits.
  • Simulating the effects of beneficial mutations on adaptive trajectories.

Main Results:

  • Multicellularity and differentiation offer survival benefits against stress but incur costs in its absence.
  • The fitness landscape determines the optimal strategy (unicellularity, multicellularity, or differentiation).
  • Mutation order (historical contingency) can influence the permanence of complexity transitions.

Conclusions:

  • Continued selective pressure for multicellularity can result in either increased complexity or a reversion to unicellularity.
  • Adaptive trajectories can involve cycles of gaining and losing complexity.
  • The evolution of complexity is sensitive to mutation order and fitness trade-offs.