Fragmentation modes and the evolution of life cycles.
Reproduction is a defining feature of living systems. To reproduce, aggregates of biological units (e.g., multicellular organisms or colonial bacteria) must fragment into smaller parts. Fragmentation modes in nature range from binary fission in bacteria to collective-level fragmentation and the prod...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
2017-11-01
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| Series: | PLoS Computational Biology |
| Online Access: | http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC5718564?pdf=render |
| _version_ | 1818180277117124608 |
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| author | Yuriy Pichugin Jorge Peña Paul B Rainey Arne Traulsen |
| author_facet | Yuriy Pichugin Jorge Peña Paul B Rainey Arne Traulsen |
| author_sort | Yuriy Pichugin |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Reproduction is a defining feature of living systems. To reproduce, aggregates of biological units (e.g., multicellular organisms or colonial bacteria) must fragment into smaller parts. Fragmentation modes in nature range from binary fission in bacteria to collective-level fragmentation and the production of unicellular propagules in multicellular organisms. Despite this apparent ubiquity, the adaptive significance of fragmentation modes has received little attention. Here, we develop a model in which groups arise from the division of single cells that do not separate but stay together until the moment of group fragmentation. We allow for all possible fragmentation patterns and calculate the population growth rate of each associated life cycle. Fragmentation modes that maximise growth rate comprise a restrictive set of patterns that include production of unicellular propagules and division into two similar size groups. Life cycles marked by single-cell bottlenecks maximise population growth rate under a wide range of conditions. This surprising result offers a new evolutionary explanation for the widespread occurrence of this mode of reproduction. All in all, our model provides a framework for exploring the adaptive significance of fragmentation modes and their associated life cycles. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-11T21:17:12Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-d81fa8adea1b46569c47f7fbb45a1203 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1553-734X 1553-7358 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-11T21:17:12Z |
| publishDate | 2017-11-01 |
| publisher | Public Library of Science (PLoS) |
| record_format | Article |
| series | PLoS Computational Biology |
| spelling | doaj.art-d81fa8adea1b46569c47f7fbb45a12032022-12-22T00:50:33ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS Computational Biology1553-734X1553-73582017-11-011311e100586010.1371/journal.pcbi.1005860Fragmentation modes and the evolution of life cycles.Yuriy PichuginJorge PeñaPaul B RaineyArne TraulsenReproduction is a defining feature of living systems. To reproduce, aggregates of biological units (e.g., multicellular organisms or colonial bacteria) must fragment into smaller parts. Fragmentation modes in nature range from binary fission in bacteria to collective-level fragmentation and the production of unicellular propagules in multicellular organisms. Despite this apparent ubiquity, the adaptive significance of fragmentation modes has received little attention. Here, we develop a model in which groups arise from the division of single cells that do not separate but stay together until the moment of group fragmentation. We allow for all possible fragmentation patterns and calculate the population growth rate of each associated life cycle. Fragmentation modes that maximise growth rate comprise a restrictive set of patterns that include production of unicellular propagules and division into two similar size groups. Life cycles marked by single-cell bottlenecks maximise population growth rate under a wide range of conditions. This surprising result offers a new evolutionary explanation for the widespread occurrence of this mode of reproduction. All in all, our model provides a framework for exploring the adaptive significance of fragmentation modes and their associated life cycles.http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC5718564?pdf=render |
| spellingShingle | Yuriy Pichugin Jorge Peña Paul B Rainey Arne Traulsen Fragmentation modes and the evolution of life cycles. PLoS Computational Biology |
| title | Fragmentation modes and the evolution of life cycles. |
| title_full | Fragmentation modes and the evolution of life cycles. |
| title_fullStr | Fragmentation modes and the evolution of life cycles. |
| title_full_unstemmed | Fragmentation modes and the evolution of life cycles. |
| title_short | Fragmentation modes and the evolution of life cycles. |
| title_sort | fragmentation modes and the evolution of life cycles |
| url | http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC5718564?pdf=render |
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