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Selecting among Alternative Scenarios of Human Evolution by Simulated Genetic Gradients
Selecting among alternative scenarios of human evolution is nowadays a common methodology to investigate the history of our species. This strategy is usually based on computer simulations of genetic data under different evolutionary scenarios, followed by a fitting of the simulated data with the rea...
Autores principales: | , |
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Formato: | Online Artículo Texto |
Lenguaje: | English |
Publicado: |
MDPI
2018
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Materias: | |
Acceso en línea: | https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6210830/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30340387 http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/genes9100506 |
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author | Branco, Catarina Arenas, Miguel |
author_facet | Branco, Catarina Arenas, Miguel |
author_sort | Branco, Catarina |
collection | PubMed |
description | Selecting among alternative scenarios of human evolution is nowadays a common methodology to investigate the history of our species. This strategy is usually based on computer simulations of genetic data under different evolutionary scenarios, followed by a fitting of the simulated data with the real data. A recent trend in the investigation of ancestral evolutionary processes of modern humans is the application of genetic gradients as a measure of fitting, since evolutionary processes such as range expansions, range contractions, and population admixture (among others) can lead to different genetic gradients. In addition, this strategy allows the analysis of the genetic causes of the observed genetic gradients. Here, we review recent findings on the selection among alternative scenarios of human evolution based on simulated genetic gradients, including pros and cons. First, we describe common methodologies to simulate genetic gradients and apply them to select among alternative scenarios of human evolution. Next, we review previous studies on the influence of range expansions, population admixture, last glacial period, and migration with long-distance dispersal on genetic gradients for some regions of the world. Finally, we discuss this analytical approach, including technical limitations, required improvements, and advice. Although here we focus on human evolution, this approach could be extended to study other species. |
format | Online Article Text |
id | pubmed-6210830 |
institution | National Center for Biotechnology Information |
language | English |
publishDate | 2018 |
publisher | MDPI |
record_format | MEDLINE/PubMed |
spelling | pubmed-62108302018-11-02 Selecting among Alternative Scenarios of Human Evolution by Simulated Genetic Gradients Branco, Catarina Arenas, Miguel Genes (Basel) Review Selecting among alternative scenarios of human evolution is nowadays a common methodology to investigate the history of our species. This strategy is usually based on computer simulations of genetic data under different evolutionary scenarios, followed by a fitting of the simulated data with the real data. A recent trend in the investigation of ancestral evolutionary processes of modern humans is the application of genetic gradients as a measure of fitting, since evolutionary processes such as range expansions, range contractions, and population admixture (among others) can lead to different genetic gradients. In addition, this strategy allows the analysis of the genetic causes of the observed genetic gradients. Here, we review recent findings on the selection among alternative scenarios of human evolution based on simulated genetic gradients, including pros and cons. First, we describe common methodologies to simulate genetic gradients and apply them to select among alternative scenarios of human evolution. Next, we review previous studies on the influence of range expansions, population admixture, last glacial period, and migration with long-distance dispersal on genetic gradients for some regions of the world. Finally, we discuss this analytical approach, including technical limitations, required improvements, and advice. Although here we focus on human evolution, this approach could be extended to study other species. MDPI 2018-10-18 /pmc/articles/PMC6210830/ /pubmed/30340387 http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/genes9100506 Text en © 2018 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). |
spellingShingle | Review Branco, Catarina Arenas, Miguel Selecting among Alternative Scenarios of Human Evolution by Simulated Genetic Gradients |
title | Selecting among Alternative Scenarios of Human Evolution by Simulated Genetic Gradients |
title_full | Selecting among Alternative Scenarios of Human Evolution by Simulated Genetic Gradients |
title_fullStr | Selecting among Alternative Scenarios of Human Evolution by Simulated Genetic Gradients |
title_full_unstemmed | Selecting among Alternative Scenarios of Human Evolution by Simulated Genetic Gradients |
title_short | Selecting among Alternative Scenarios of Human Evolution by Simulated Genetic Gradients |
title_sort | selecting among alternative scenarios of human evolution by simulated genetic gradients |
topic | Review |
url | https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6210830/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30340387 http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/genes9100506 |
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