Evolution of Genome Size in Asexual Digital Organisms.

ABSTRACT: Genome sizes have evolved to vary widely, from 250 bases in viroids to 670 billion bases in some amoebas. This remarkable variation in genome size is the outcome of complex interactions between various evolutionary factors such as mutation rate and population size. While comparative genomics has uncovered how some of these evolutionary factors influence genome size, we still do not understand what drives genome size evolution. Specifically, it is not clear how the primordial mutational processes of base substitutions, insertions, and deletions influence genome size evolution in asexual organisms. Here, we use digital evolution to investigate genome size evolution by tracking genome edits and their fitness effects in real time. In agreement with empirical data, we find that mutation rate is

SUBMITTER: Gupta A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4867773 | biostudies-literature | 2016 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature