Department of Biological Sciences, San José State University, San José, CA 95192, USA.
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511, USA.
Viruses. 2024 Jun 18;16(6):977. doi: 10.3390/v16060977.
Experimental evolution studies, in which biological populations are evolved in a specific environment over time, can address questions about the nature of spontaneous mutations, responses to selection, and the origins and maintenance of novel traits. Here, we review more than 30 years of experimental evolution studies using the bacteriophage (phage) Φ6 cystovirus. Similar to many lab-studied bacteriophages, Φ6 has a high mutation rate, large population size, fast generation time, and can be genetically engineered or cryogenically frozen, which facilitates its rapid evolution in the laboratory and the subsequent characterization of the effects of its mutations. Moreover, its segmented RNA genome, outer membrane, and capacity for multiple phages to coinfect a single host cell make Φ6 a good non-pathogenic model for investigating the evolution of RNA viruses that infect humans. We describe experiments that used Φ6 to address the fitness effects of spontaneous mutations, the consequences of evolution in the presence of coinfection, the evolution of host ranges, and mechanisms and consequences of the evolution of thermostability. We highlight open areas of inquiry where further experimentation on Φ6 could inform predictions for pathogenic viruses.
实验进化研究是指在特定环境中随时间推移对生物种群进行进化的研究，它可以解决关于自发突变的本质、对选择的反应以及新特征的起源和维持等问题。在这里，我们回顾了使用噬菌体（phage）Φ6 囊病毒进行的 30 多年的实验进化研究。与许多实验室研究的噬菌体类似，Φ6 具有高突变率、大种群规模、快速世代时间，并且可以进行基因工程或低温冷冻，这便于其在实验室中快速进化，并随后对其突变的影响进行特征描述。此外，它的分段 RNA 基因组、外膜以及多种噬菌体同时感染单个宿主细胞的能力，使得 Φ6 成为研究感染人类的 RNA 病毒进化的良好非致病性模型。我们描述了使用 Φ6 来解决自发突变的适应度效应、共存感染存在时的进化后果、宿主范围的进化以及热稳定性进化的机制和后果的实验。我们强调了进一步在 Φ6 上进行实验可以为致病性病毒提供预测信息的开放研究领域。
