How much heritable variation can be maintained in finite populations by mutation-selection balance?

Bürger, R., Wagner, G.P., & Stettinger, F. (1989). How much heritable variation can be maintained in finite populations by mutation-selection balance? Evolution 43 (8) 1748-1766. 10.1111/j.1558-5646.1989.tb02624.x.

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Abstract

The joint effects of stabilizing selection, mutation, recombination, and random drift on the genetic variability of a polygenic character in a finite population are investigated. A simulation study is performed to test the validity of various analytical predictions on the equilibrium genetic variance. A new formula for the expected equilibrium variance is derived that approximates the observed equilibrium variance very closely for all parameter combinations we have tested. The computer model simulates the continuum-of-alleles model of Crow and Kimura. However, it is completely stochastic in the sense that it models evolution as a Markov process and does not use any deterministic evolution equations. The theoretical results are compared with heritability estimates from laboratory and natural populations. Heritabilities ranging from 20% to 50%, as observed even in lab populations under a constant environment, can only be explained by a mutation-selection balance if the phenotypic character is neutral or the number of genes contributing to the trait is sufficiently high, typically several hundred, or if there are a few highly variable loci that influence quantitative traits.

Item Type:	Article
Research Programs:	System and Decision Sciences - Core (SDS)
Depositing User:	Romeo Molina
Date Deposited:	21 Nov 2017 09:44
Last Modified:	27 Aug 2021 17:41
URI:	https://pure.iiasa.ac.at/14967

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