Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

Population Growth

Population Growth

Population size is dynamic, increasing with birth rates and immigration, and decreasing with death rates and emigration. In ideal conditions with unlimited resources, populations can increase exponentially, which plots as a J-shaped growth rate curve of population size against time. This type of curve is characteristic of newly-introduced invasive species, or populations that have suffered catastrophic declines and are rebounding.

Evolution of New Traits in Microbes

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...

Replication in Prokaryotes

Replication in Prokaryotes

DNA replication has three main steps: initiation, elongation, and termination. Replication in prokaryotes begins when initiator proteins bind to the single origin of replication (ori) on the cell's circular chromosome. Replication then proceeds around the entire circle of the chromosome in each direction from the two replication forks, resulting in two DNA molecules.
Many Proteins Work Together to Replicate the Chromosome
Replication is coordinated and carried out by a host of specialized...

Replication in Prokaryotes

Replication in Prokaryotes

Replication in Prokaryotes

Replication in Prokaryotes

Modeling with Differential Equations

Modeling with Differential Equations

Population dynamics can be described mathematically by considering the population size P(t) as a function of time. The rate of change of the population is then represented by the derivative of P(t). A simple assumption is that the rate of growth is proportional to the size of the population itself. This leads to an exponential growth model, where the population increases rapidly without bound. While this is a useful first approximation, it does not reflect realistic long-term...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Reply to Rana and Singh: Critical thresholds and critical actions for evolvable AI.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·2026

Same author

Reply to Boudry: The threat of evolvable AI is too grave to be left to intuition.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·2026

Same author

Evolvable AI: Threats of a new major transition in evolution.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·2026

Same author

Catalysts and inhibitors of critical transitions in ecological systems.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·2026

Same author

Ecological Risk-Benefit Analysis for Assisted Colonization.

Global change biology·2025

Same author

COVID-19 Vaccine-Associated Sensorineural Hearing Loss and Tinnitus.

Cureus·2025

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 10, 2026

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

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

Published on: August 18, 2023

The ecology and evolution of sub-exponential replicators.

Bianka Kovács^1,2, György Barabás^1,3, Géza Meszéna^1,4

¹Institute of Evolution, HUN-REN Centre for Ecological Research, Budapest, Hungary.

Plos Computational Biology

|May 8, 2026

Summary

Oligonucleotide replicators model early life. A new model reveals limits on diversity, showing high concentrations favor exponential growth, potentially leading to competitor extinction in prebiotic environments.

More Related Videos

Designing Automated, High-throughput, Continuous Cell Growth Experiments Using eVOLVER

Designing Automated, High-throughput, Continuous Cell Growth Experiments Using eVOLVER

Published on: May 19, 2019

Following the Dynamics of Structural Variants in Experimentally Evolved Populations

Following the Dynamics of Structural Variants in Experimentally Evolved Populations

Published on: February 3, 2023

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: May 10, 2026

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

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

Published on: August 18, 2023

Designing Automated, High-throughput, Continuous Cell Growth Experiments Using eVOLVER

Designing Automated, High-throughput, Continuous Cell Growth Experiments Using eVOLVER

Published on: May 19, 2019

Following the Dynamics of Structural Variants in Experimentally Evolved Populations

Following the Dynamics of Structural Variants in Experimentally Evolved Populations

Published on: February 3, 2023

Area of Science:

* Origin of Life Studies
* Chemical Evolution
* Systems Chemistry

Background:

* Oligonucleotide chemical replicator molecules are key models for prebiotic evolution.
* Existing models present conflicting assumptions and predictions regarding their eco-evolutionary dynamics.
* A comprehensive understanding of these systems is needed to clarify their role in early life formation.

Purpose of the Study:

* To develop a model of oligonucleotide replicator systems accounting for reversible template-copy association.
* To investigate the impact of system and resource concentrations on replicator diversity and growth dynamics.
* To explore the competitive interactions between sub-exponential and exponential replicators.

Main Methods:

* Development of a mathematical model incorporating reversible association and self-inhibition.
* Analysis of system dynamics under varying concentrations of replicators and resources.
* Simulation of competitive scenarios between different replicator growth rates.

Main Results:

* Reversible association leads to self-inhibition and sub-exponential growth, imposing limits on attainable diversity.
* Increased system concentration enhances diversity, while increased resource concentration decreases it.
* Exponentially growing replicators outcompete sub-exponential ones in high-concentration environments, irrespective of copying rate.

Conclusions:

* The model clarifies eco-evolutionary limits in replicator systems, challenging simplified predictions.
* Concentration dynamics play a critical role in determining species diversity and competitive success.
* Exponential replicators can dominate prebiotic environments, potentially leading to competitive exclusion of slower-growing species.