School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, Vic., Australia.
EMBO Rep. 2019 Aug;20(8):e46992. doi: 10.15252/embr.201846992. Epub 2019 Jul 24.
Microbial experimental evolution uses controlled laboratory populations to study the mechanisms of evolution. The molecular analysis of evolved populations enables empirical tests that can confirm the predictions of evolutionary theory, but can also lead to surprising discoveries. As with other fields in the life sciences, microbial experimental evolution has become a tool, deployed as part of the suite of techniques available to the molecular biologist. Here, I provide a review of the general findings of microbial experimental evolution, especially those relevant to molecular microbiologists that are new to the field. I also relate these results to design considerations for an evolution experiment and suggest future directions for those working at the intersection of experimental evolution and molecular biology.
微生物实验进化利用受控的实验室种群来研究进化的机制。进化种群的分子分析能够进行经验性测试，从而证实进化理论的预测，但也可能导致令人惊讶的发现。与生命科学的其他领域一样，微生物实验进化已成为一种工具，作为分子生物学家可用技术套件的一部分进行部署。在这里，我回顾了微生物实验进化的一般发现，特别是那些与分子微生物学家相关的、该领域的新手可能不熟悉的发现。我还将这些结果与进化实验的设计考虑因素联系起来，并为那些处于实验进化和分子生物学交叉点的人提出未来的研究方向。
