Coevolution of robustness, epistasis, and recombination favors asexual reproduction.

ABSTRACT: The prevalence of sexual reproduction remains one of the most perplexing phenomena in evolutionary biology. The deterministic mutation hypothesis postulates that sexual reproduction will be advantageous under synergistic epistasis, a condition in which mutations cause a greater reduction in fitness when combined than would be expected from their individual effects. The inverse condition, antagonistic epistasis, correspondingly is predicted to favor asexual reproduction. To assess this hypothesis, we introduce a finite population evolutionary process that combines a recombination modifier formalism with a gene-regulatory network model. We demonstrate that when reproductive mode and epistasis are allowed to coevolve, asexual reproduction outcompetes sexual reproduction. In addition, no corre

SUBMITTER: MacCarthy T 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC1931480 | biostudies-literature | 2007 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature