Assortative mating can impede or facilitate fixation of underdominant alleles.

ABSTRACT: Underdominant mutations have fixed between divergent species, yet classical models suggest that rare underdominant alleles are purged quickly except in small or subdivided populations. We predict that underdominant alleles that also influence mate choice, such as those affecting coloration patterns visible to mates and predators alike, can fix more readily. We analyze a mechanistic model of positive assortative mating in which individuals have n chances to sample compatible mates. This one-parameter model naturally spans random mating (n=1) and complete assortment (n→∞), yet it produces sexual selection whose strength depends non-monotonically on n. This sexual selection interacts with viability selection to either inhibit or facilitate fixation. As mating opportunities increase, underdomi

SUBMITTER: Newberry MG 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5642052 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature