Year: 2023
Type: article
Abstract: The standard neutral model of molecular evolution has traditionally been used as the null model for population genomics. We gathered a collection of 45 genome-wide site frequency spectra from a diverse set of species, most of which display an excess of low and high frequency variants compared to the expectation of the standard neutral model, resulting in U-shaped spectra. We show that multiple merger coalescent models often provide a better fit to these observations than the standard Kingman coalescent. Hence, in many circumstances these under-utilized models may serve as the more appropriate reference for genomic analyses. We further discuss the underlying evolutionary processes that may result in the widespread U-shape of frequency spectra.
Source: PLoS Genetics
Institutions: University of Hohenheim, University of Leicester, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Harvard University, Inserm, Collège de France, Centre Interdisciplinaire de Recherche en Biologie, University of California, Berkeley, Lycée Louis-le-Grand, Siemens (Germany), Arizona State University, University of Oxford, École Normale Supérieure - PSL, Institut de Biologie de l'École Normale Supérieure, Université Paris Cité, Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle, Éco-Anthropologie
Language: English
Subfield: Genetics
Domain: Life Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $2,629
OpenAlex ID: W4360608452