Speaker
Description
The evolutionary adaptation of populations arises from the interplay of several fundamental biological processes, including heredity, natural selection, mutation, competition, and the mixing of gene pools through horizontal gene transfer or sexual reproduction. Horizontal gene transfer, defined as the exchange of genetic material between individuals outside vertical (parent-to-offspring) inheritance, plays a major role in the evolution and adaptation of many organisms. It is particularly well documented in the emergence of bacterial virulence and antibiotic resistance. However, despite its recognized importance, the impact of horizontal gene transfer on the phenotypic distribution and density of populations remains poorly understood.
In this talk, I will present some integro-differential models from evolutionary biology. I will introduce an asymptotic approach designed to study such models in a regime of small mutational effects. By applying this method to a model that incorporates a type of horizontal gene transfer, I will show how that horizontal gene transfer may dramatically alter evolutionary dynamics, giving rise to novel adaptive trajectories as well as fundamentally different evolutionary outcomes.
