articleScienceJan 26, 2012Closed access

The Molecular Diversity of Adaptive Convergence

Inserm · Délégation Paris 7 · +3 more institutions

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Abstract

Natural Selection Caught in the Act Understanding how new functions evolve has been of long-standing interest. However, the number of mutations needed to evolve a key innovation is rarely known, or whether other sets of mutations would also suffice, whether the intermediate steps are driven by natural selection, or how contingent the outcome is on steps along the way. Meyer et al. (p. 428 ; see the Perspective by Thompson ) answer these questions for a case in which phage lambda evolved the ability to infect its host Escherichia coli through a novel receptor. This shift required four mutations, which accumulated under natural selection in concert with coevolution of the host. However, when Tenaillon et al. (p.…

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