Systemic and rapid restructuring of the genome: a new perspective on punctuated equilibrium

• Published in: Current genetics Vol. 67; no. 1; pp. 57 - 63
• Main Authors: Heasley, Lydia R., Sampaio, Nadia M. V., Argueso, Juan Lucas
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Springer Berlin Heidelberg 01.02.2021; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Biochemistry; Biological Evolution; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Bursts; Cell Biology; Diploids; Evolution; Genome, Fungal - genetics; Genomes; Genomic instability; Genomic Instability - genetics; Genomics; Life Sciences; Microbial Genetics and Genomics; Microbiology; Mini-Review; Mutation; New species; Plant Sciences; Proteomics; Saccharomyces cerevisiae - genetics; Aneuploidy; LOH; Mitotic recombination; Punctuated evolution; Genome evolution; Genomic instability
• ISSN: 0172-8083; 1432-0983; 1432-0983
• DOI: 10.1007/s00294-020-01119-2

The rates and patterns by which cells acquire mutations profoundly shape their evolutionary trajectories and phenotypic potential. Conventional models maintain that mutations are acquired independently of one another over many successive generations. Yet, recent evidence suggests that cells can also experience mutagenic processes that drive rapid genome evolution . One such process manifests as punctuated bursts of genomic instability, in which multiple new mutations are acquired simultaneously during transient episodes of genomic instability. This mutational mode is reminiscent of the theory of punctuated equilibrium, proposed by Stephen Jay Gould and Niles Eldredge in 1972 to explain the burst-like appearance of new species in the fossil record. In this review, we survey the dominant and emerging theories of eukaryotic genome evolution with a particular focus on the growing body of work that substantiates the existence and importance of punctuated bursts of genomic instability. In addition, we summarize and discuss two recent studies from our own group, the results of which indicate that punctuated bursts systemic genomic instability (SGI) can rapidly reconfigure the structure of the diploid genome of Saccharomyces cerevisiae .