2000/09/01 by Thomas Lenormand, Sarah P. Otto · 197 citations
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology · Medicine · Social Sciences · #Evolution and Genetic Dynamics #Mathematical and Theoretical Epidemiology and Ecology Models #Evolutionary Game Theory and Cooperation #Epistasis #Recombination #Biology #Selection (genetic algorithm) #Genetics #Evolutionary biology #Population #Background selection #Allele #Directional selection #Genetic variation #Gene #Computer science
paper · doi:10.1093/genetics/156.1.423
published in Genetics 156(1), 423-438 (Oxford University Press)
openalex publication_date 2000/09/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/29
Most models describing the evolution of recombination have focused on the case of a single population, implicitly assuming that all individuals are equally likely to mate and that spatial heterogeneity in selection is absent. In these models, the evolution of recombination is driven by linkage disequilibria generated either by epistatic selection or drift. Models based on epistatic selection show that recombination can be favored if epistasis is negative and weak compared to directional selection and if the recombination modifier locus is tightly linked to the selected loci. In this article, we examine the joint effects of spatial heterogeneity in selection and epistasis on the evolution of recombination. In a model with two patches, each subject to different selection regimes, we consider the cases of mutation-selection and migration-selection balance as well as the spread of beneficial alleles. We find that including spatial heterogeneity extends the range of epistasis over which recombination can be favored. Indeed, recombination can be favored without epistasis, with negative and even with positive epistasis depending on environmental circumstances. The selection pressure acting on recombination-modifier loci is often much stronger with spatial heterogeneity, and even loosely linked modifiers and free linkage may evolve. In each case, predicting whether recombination is favored requires knowledge of both the type of environmental heterogeneity and epistasis, as none of these factors alone is sufficient to predict the outcome.