Eco-evolutionary feedback and the tuning of proto-developmental life cycles.

ABSTRACT: Multicellular organisms depend on developmental programs to coordinate growth and differentiation from single cells, but the origins of development are unclear. A possible starting point is stochastic phenotypic variation generated by molecular noise. Given appropriate environmental conditions, noise-driven differentiation could conceivably evolve so as to come under regulatory control; however, abiotic conditions are likely to be restrictive. Drawing from an experimental system, we present a model in which environmental fluctuations are coupled to population growth. We show that this coupling generates stable selection for a single optimal strategy that is largely insensitive to environmental conditions, including the number of competitors, carrying capacity of the environment, difference

SUBMITTER: Libby E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3867345 | biostudies-literature | 2013

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature