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Density dependence triggers runaway selection of reduced senescence

Density dependence triggers runaway selection of reduced senescence
Density dependence triggers runaway selection of reduced senescence
In the presence of exogenous mortality risks, future reproduction by an individual is worth less than present reproduction to its fitness. Senescent aging thus results inevitably from transferring net fertility into younger ages. Some long-lived organisms appear to defy theory, however, presenting negligible senescence (e.g., hydra) and extended lifespans (e.g., Bristlecone Pine). Here, we investigate the possibility that the onset of vitality loss can be delayed indefinitely, even accepting the abundant evidence that reproduction is intrinsically costly to survival. For an environment with constant hazard, we establish that natural selection itself contributes to increasing density-dependent recruitment losses. We then develop a generalized model of accelerating vitality loss for analyzing fitness optima as a tradeoff between compression and spread in the age profile of net fertility. Across a realistic spectrum of senescent age profiles, density regulation of recruitment can trigger runaway selection for ever-reducing senescence. This novel prediction applies without requirement for special life-history characteristics such as indeterminate somatic growth or increasing fecundity with age. The evolution of nonsenescence from senescence is robust to the presence of exogenous adult mortality, which tends instead to increase the age-independent component of vitality loss. We simulate examples of runaway selection leading to negligible senescence and even intrinsic immortality.
1553-734X
2580-2589
Seymour, Robert M.
1ce61658-32f2-4f6b-9684-bb485637db9e
Doncaster, C. Patrick
0eff2f42-fa0a-4e35-b6ac-475ad3482047
Seymour, Robert M.
1ce61658-32f2-4f6b-9684-bb485637db9e
Doncaster, C. Patrick
0eff2f42-fa0a-4e35-b6ac-475ad3482047

Seymour, Robert M. and Doncaster, C. Patrick (2007) Density dependence triggers runaway selection of reduced senescence. PLoS Computational Biology, 3 (12), 2580-2589. (doi:10.1371/journal.pcbi.0030256).

Record type: Article

Abstract

In the presence of exogenous mortality risks, future reproduction by an individual is worth less than present reproduction to its fitness. Senescent aging thus results inevitably from transferring net fertility into younger ages. Some long-lived organisms appear to defy theory, however, presenting negligible senescence (e.g., hydra) and extended lifespans (e.g., Bristlecone Pine). Here, we investigate the possibility that the onset of vitality loss can be delayed indefinitely, even accepting the abundant evidence that reproduction is intrinsically costly to survival. For an environment with constant hazard, we establish that natural selection itself contributes to increasing density-dependent recruitment losses. We then develop a generalized model of accelerating vitality loss for analyzing fitness optima as a tradeoff between compression and spread in the age profile of net fertility. Across a realistic spectrum of senescent age profiles, density regulation of recruitment can trigger runaway selection for ever-reducing senescence. This novel prediction applies without requirement for special life-history characteristics such as indeterminate somatic growth or increasing fecundity with age. The evolution of nonsenescence from senescence is robust to the presence of exogenous adult mortality, which tends instead to increase the age-independent component of vitality loss. We simulate examples of runaway selection leading to negligible senescence and even intrinsic immortality.

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More information

Submitted date: 18 June 2007
Published date: 28 December 2007
Additional Information: A previous version of this article appeared as an Early Online Release on November 14, 2007

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 50045
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/50045
ISSN: 1553-734X
PURE UUID: b051874c-7292-4555-87a2-852cf536db73
ORCID for C. Patrick Doncaster: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0001-9406-0693

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Date deposited: 17 Jan 2008
Last modified: 16 Mar 2024 02:49

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Author: Robert M. Seymour

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