Conditional expression explains molecular evolution of social genes in a microbe

Janaina Lima de Oliveira, Atahualpa Castillo Morales, Balint Stewart, Nicole Gruenheit, Jennifer Engelmoer, Suzanne Battom Brown, Reinaldo A. de Brito, Laurence D. Hurst, Araxi O. Urrutia, Christopher R.L. Thompson, Jason B. Wolf

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article

Abstract

Conflict is thought to play a critical role in the evolution of social interactions by promoting diversity or driving accelerated evolution. However, despite our sophisticated understanding of how conflict shapes social traits, we have limited knowledge of how it impacts molecular evolution across the underlying social genes. Here we address this problem by analyzing the genome-wide impact of social interactions using genome sequences from 67 Dictyostelium discoideum strains. We find that social genes tend to exhibit enhanced polymorphism and accelerated evolution. However, these patterns are not consistent with conflict driven processes, but instead reflect relaxed purifying selection. This pattern is most likely explained by the conditional nature of social interactions, whereby selection on genes expressed only in social interactions is diluted by generations of inactivity. This dilution of selection by inactivity enhances the role of drift, leading to increased polymorphism and accelerated evolution, which we call the Red King process.

Original languageEnglish
Article number3284
Pages (from-to)1-12
Number of pages12
JournalNature Communications
Volume10
Issue number1
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 23 Jul 2019

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Chemistry(all)
  • Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology(all)
  • Physics and Astronomy(all)

Cite this

Conditional expression explains molecular evolution of social genes in a microbe. / de Oliveira, Janaina Lima; Morales, Atahualpa Castillo; Stewart, Balint; Gruenheit, Nicole; Engelmoer, Jennifer; Brown, Suzanne Battom; de Brito, Reinaldo A.; Hurst, Laurence D.; Urrutia, Araxi O.; Thompson, Christopher R.L.; Wolf, Jason B.

In: Nature Communications, Vol. 10, No. 1, 3284, 23.07.2019, p. 1-12.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article

de Oliveira, JL, Morales, AC, Stewart, B, Gruenheit, N, Engelmoer, J, Brown, SB, de Brito, RA, Hurst, LD, Urrutia, AO, Thompson, CRL & Wolf, JB 2019, 'Conditional expression explains molecular evolution of social genes in a microbe', Nature Communications, vol. 10, no. 1, 3284, pp. 1-12. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-019-11237-2
de Oliveira JL, Morales AC, Stewart B, Gruenheit N, Engelmoer J, Brown SB et al. Conditional expression explains molecular evolution of social genes in a microbe. Nature Communications. 2019 Jul 23;10(1):1-12. 3284. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-019-11237-2
de Oliveira, Janaina Lima ; Morales, Atahualpa Castillo ; Stewart, Balint ; Gruenheit, Nicole ; Engelmoer, Jennifer ; Brown, Suzanne Battom ; de Brito, Reinaldo A. ; Hurst, Laurence D. ; Urrutia, Araxi O. ; Thompson, Christopher R.L. ; Wolf, Jason B. / Conditional expression explains molecular evolution of social genes in a microbe. In: Nature Communications. 2019 ; Vol. 10, No. 1. pp. 1-12.
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AU - Brown, Suzanne Battom

AU - de Brito, Reinaldo A.

AU - Hurst, Laurence D.

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