Polygenic Adaptation: Integrating Population Genetics and Gene Regulatory Networks

Maud Fagny; Frédéric Austerlitz

doi:10.1016/j.tig.2021.03.005

Polygenic Adaptation: Integrating Population Genetics and Gene Regulatory Networks

Trends Genet. 2021 Jul;37(7):631-638. doi: 10.1016/j.tig.2021.03.005. Epub 2021 Apr 21.

Authors

Maud Fagny¹, Frédéric Austerlitz²

Affiliations

¹ UMR7206 Eco-Anthropologie, Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Université de Paris, Paris, France. Electronic address: [email protected].
² UMR7206 Eco-Anthropologie, Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Université de Paris, Paris, France.

PMID: 33892958
DOI: 10.1016/j.tig.2021.03.005

Abstract

The adaptation of populations to local environments often relies on the selection of optimal values for polygenic traits. Here, we first summarize the results obtained from different quantitative genetics and population genetics models, about the genetic architecture of polygenic traits and their response to directional selection. We then highlight the contribution of systems biology to the understanding of the molecular bases of polygenic traits and the evolution of gene regulatory networks involved in these traits. Finally, we discuss the need for a unifying framework merging the fields of population genetics, quantitative genetics and systems biology to better understand the molecular bases of polygenic traits adaptation.

Keywords: adaptive evolution; gene regulatory networks; polygenic selection; population genetics modelling; quantitative traits; systems biology.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Review

MeSH terms

Adaptation, Physiological / genetics
Evolution, Molecular*
Gene Regulatory Networks / genetics*
Genetic Variation / genetics
Genetics, Population*
Humans
Multifactorial Inheritance / genetics
Quantitative Trait Loci / genetics*
Selection, Genetic / genetics