The Role of Dominant Mutations in the Population Expansion

Abstract. We have studied the dynamics of expansion of diploid, sexually reproducing populations onto new territories demanding different genetic adaptations. Populations succeeded in the new habitats if the mutations of alleles responsible for adaptation to the new conditions were recessive. If behind the hostile territory another friendly habitat exists, several different scenarios are possible, including one in which the middle, most hostile, habitat remains empty, separating populated two, more friendly, ones

PHASE TRANSITION IN THE GENOME EVOLUTION FAVORS NONRANDOM DISTRIBUTION OF GENES ON CHROMOSOMES

We have used the Monte Carlo-based computer models to show that selection pressure could affect the distribution of recombination hotspots along the chromosome. Close to the critical crossover rate, where genomes may switch between the Darwinian purifying selection or complementation of haplotypes, the distribution of recombination events and the force of selection exerted on genes affect the structure of chromosomes. The order of expression of genes and their location on chromosome may decide about the extinction or survival of competing populations

M.R.: Correlation between mutation pressure, selection pressure, and occurrence of amino acids.

Abstract. With the help of the empirical mutation table for nucleotides in the Borrelia burgdorferi genome we have performed Monte Carlo simulation of the pure mutation pressure experienced by the genes of the genome. We have examined the divergence of the mutated genes from the ancestral ones and we have constructed MPM1 matrix (Mutation Probability Matrix) of the substitution rates between amino acids of the diverging genes. The results have been compared to mutation data matrix PAM1 PET91 representing mutation and selection data of 16130 homologous genes od different organisms. We have found that the effective survival time of amino acids in organisms follows a power law with respect to frequency of their occurrence in genes. This makes possible to find the effect of the pure mutational pressure and the selection on the amino acid composition of genes. The results are universal in the sense that the survival time of amino acids calculated from the higher order PAMk matrices (k > 1) follows the same power law as in the case of PAM1 matrices

How Gene Survival Depends on Their Length

Abstract. Gene survival depends on the mutational pressure acting on the gene sequences and selection pressure for the function of the gene products. While the probability of the occurrence of mutations inside genes depends roughly linearly on their length, the probability of elimination of their function does not grow linearly with the length because of the intragenic suppression effect. Furthermore, the probability of redefinition of the stop and start codons is independent of the gene length while shortening of gene sequences by generating stop codons inside gene sequences depends on gene length