Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, South Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3PS, UK
Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, South Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3PS, UK.
Proc Biol Sci. 2017 Oct 11;284(1864). doi: 10.1098/rspb.2017.1967.
In order for the first genomes to evolve, independent replicators had to act cooperatively, with some reducing their own replication rate to help copy others. It has been argued that limited diffusion explains this early cooperation. However, social evolution models have shown that limited diffusion on its own often does not favour cooperation. Here we model early replicators using social evolution tools. We show that: (i) replicators can be considered to be cooperating as a result of kin selection; (ii) limited diffusion on its own does not favour cooperation; and (iii) the addition of overlapping generations, probably a general trait of molecular replicators, promotes cooperation. These results suggest key life-history features in the evolution of the genome and that the same factors can favour cooperation across the entire tree of life.
为了让第一批基因组进化，独立的复制子必须进行合作，其中一些会降低自身的复制率，以帮助复制其他复制子。有人认为，有限的扩散解释了这种早期的合作。然而，社会进化模型表明，仅有限的扩散通常不利于合作。在这里，我们使用社会进化工具来模拟早期的复制子。我们表明：（i）由于亲缘选择，复制子可以被视为合作；（ii）有限的扩散本身不利于合作；（iii）添加重叠世代，可能是分子复制子的一般特征，促进了合作。这些结果表明了基因组进化中的关键生活史特征，并且相同的因素可以在整个生命之树中促进合作。
