Exploring the expanse between theoretical questions and experimental approaches in the modern study of evolvability

Draghi, Jeremy A.; Ogbunugafor, C. Brandon

doi:10.1002/jez.b.23134

Cited by 4 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 120 publications

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“…In summary, while robustness is pivotal for an organism’s evolutionary potential, the exact relationship between robustness and evolvability is complex. To understand this delicate balance, a focused and systematic approach that integrates both theory and experimental work is needed (Greenbury et al, 2016 ; Draghi and Ogbunugafor, 2023 ; Catalán et al, 2018 ; Draghi et al, 2010 ).…”

Section: The Role Of Mutational Robustness In Evolvabilitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Mutational robustness and the role of buffer genes in evolvability

Tawfeeq,

Voordeckers,

van den Berg

et al. 2024

EMBO J

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Organisms rely on mutations to fuel adaptive evolution. However, many mutations impose a negative effect on fitness. Cells may have therefore evolved mechanisms that affect the phenotypic effects of mutations, thus conferring mutational robustness. Specifically, so-called buffer genes are hypothesized to interact directly or indirectly with genetic variation and reduce its effect on fitness. Environmental or genetic perturbations can change the interaction between buffer genes and genetic variation, thereby unmasking the genetic variation’s phenotypic effects and thus providing a source of variation for natural selection to act on. This review provides an overview of our understanding of mutational robustness and buffer genes, with the chaperone gene HSP90 as a key example. It discusses whether buffer genes merely affect standing variation or also interact with de novo mutations, how mutational robustness could influence evolution, and whether mutational robustness might be an evolved trait or rather a mere side-effect of complex genetic interactions.

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Section: The Role Of Mutational Robustness In Evolvabilitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Mutational robustness and the role of buffer genes in evolvability

Tawfeeq,

Voordeckers,

van den Berg

et al. 2024

EMBO J

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“…It is not obvious that living systems need to be so evolvable (i.e., able to generate adaptive variation), so why has evolution produced populations that are able to evolve so relentlessly? One challenge to addressing this question is that directly observing how evolvability evolves in natural populations is intractable due to the timescales and resolution of historical data that would be required [9][10][11][12][13]. A holistic picture of the processes that drive the evolution of evolvability is necessary to understand why evolution is so effective and to limit (or harness) its future potential [14].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…It is clear that the term evolvability is used ambiguously to describe several distinct processes in evolution. Furthermore, the conditions that shape the simultaneous evolution of multiple determinants of evolvability, how these determinants influence each other, and the way they aid adaptation in specific or novel environments remains unexplored [13].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evolution takes multiple paths to evolvability when facing environmental change

Kumawat

Lalejini

Acosta

et al. 2023

Preprint

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Evolvability is defined as the capacity of populations to generate adaptive variation that promotes evolution by natural selection. Lineages in a fluctuating environment must rapidly adapt to different states of the environment to survive. One possible solution is for populations to evolve increased evolvability. However, in individual environmental states, there is no selection pressure on a population to make adaptive variation more accessible. Whether natural selection can drive organisms to become more evolvable is still unclear. Here we show that evolution in fluctuating environments can lead to an increase in the mutational accessibility of adaptive variation. We find that genotypes from populations that evolve in environments fluctuating between two states have a larger proportion of mutants adapted to alternate environments when compared to genotypes in a static environment. These genotypes also encode more information about the nature of the fluctuating environments in their mutational neighborhood. Analysis of evolved lineages shows that the lineages survive by continually fixing adaptive mutations, and localizing on areas of the genotype space with increased access to alternate phenotypes. We find that this increase in adaptive mutants is contingent on the rate at which the environment fluctuates. To further understand this phenomenon, we explore evolutionary dynamics in a model with explicit genetic structure in fluctuating environments. Results from this simple model point toward a mechanism by which changing environments promote the localization of populations on edges in genotype space, where a diverse repertoire of variants is available through mutations. Populations then stochastically evolve along these boundaries and end up in highly evolvable locations between alternatively adapted phenotypes. Thus, we demonstrate that evolvability can and does evolve even in simple systems, and likely has been playing an important role in the adaptation of living systems.

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“…It is based on the question of whether the capacity to evolve can itself evolve. One of its chief challenges to broader adoption involves its many interpretations, which can confound how it is measured and operationalized 2 . One definition refers to the general ability of replicators to respond to the force of selection 3 .…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%