- THIS ARTICLE
- Full Text
- Full Text (PDF)
- Supporting Information
- Corrigendum
-
All Versions of this Article:
genetics.109.104174v1
183/2/673 most recent - Alert me when this article is cited
- Alert me if a correction is posted
- SERVICES
- Email this article to a friend
- Similar articles in this journal
- Similar articles in PubMed
- Alert me to new issues of the journal
- Download to citation manager
- Reprints & Permissions
- GOOGLE SCHOLAR
- Articles by Martin, O. C.
- Articles by Wagner, A.
- PUBMED
- PubMed Citation
- Articles by Martin, O. C.
- Articles by Wagner, A.
Originally published as Genetics Published Articles Ahead of Print on August 3, 2009.
Genetics, Vol. 183, 673-684, October 2009, Copyright © 2009
doi:10.1534/genetics.109.104174
Effects of Recombination on Complex Regulatory Circuits
Olivier C. Martin*,
,1 and
Andreas Wagner
,
,**,
* Université Paris-Sud, UMR8626, Laboratoire de Physique Théorique et Modèles Statistiques, F-91405 Orsay, France, Université Paris-Sud, UMR0320/UMR8120 Génétique Végétale, F-91190 Gif-sur-Yvette, France, Department of Biochemistry, University of Zurich, CH-8057 Zurich, Switzerland, The Santa Fe Institute, Santa Fe, New Mexico 87501 ** Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland and Department of Biology, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87131
1 Corresponding author: Université Paris-Sud, LPTMS, Bat. 100, F-91405 Orsay, France.
E-mail: olivier.martin{at}u-psud.fr
Mutation and recombination are the two main forces generating genetic variation. Most of this variation may be deleterious. Because recombination can reorganize entire genes and genetic circuits, it may have much greater consequences than point mutations. We here explore the effects of recombination on models of transcriptional regulation circuits that play important roles in embryonic development. We show that recombination has weaker deleterious effects on the expression phenotypes of these circuits than mutations. In addition, if a population of such circuits evolves under the influence of mutation and recombination, we find that three key properties emerge: (1) deleterious effects of mutations are reduced dramatically; (2) the diversity of genotypes in the population is greatly increased, a feature that may be important for phenotypic innovation; and (3) cis-regulatory complexes appear. These are combinations of regulatory interactions that influence the expression of one gene and that mitigate deleterious recombination effects.
 |