Abstract
Evolution is an on-going process, and it can be studied experimentally in organisms with rapid generations. My team has maintained 12 populations of Escherichia coli in a simple laboratory environment for >25 years and 60 000 generations. We have quantified the dynamics of adaptation by natural selection, seen some of the populations diverge into stably coexisting ecotypes, described changes in the bacteria’s mutation rate, observed the new ability to exploit a previously untapped carbon source, characterized the dynamics of genome evolution and used parallel evolution to identify the genetic targets of selection. I discuss what the future might hold for this particular experiment, briefly highlight some other microbial evolution experiments and suggest how the fields of experimental evolution and microbial ecology might intersect going forward.
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Acknowledgements
Thanks to everyone who has participated in the LTEE over the years including especially the unsung heroes—the technicians and lab managers Sue Simpson, Lynette Ekunwe and especially Neerja Hajela. Thanks also to Mike Wiser, Rohan Maddamsetti, Jeff Barrick, Zach Blount and Olivier Tenaillon for preparing figures, and to two reviewers for their helpful comments. The LTEE has been supported by grants from the National Science Foundation (currently DEB-1451740 and cooperative agreement DBI-0939454) and by the John Hannah Endowment at Michigan State University.
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Lenski, R. Experimental evolution and the dynamics of adaptation and genome evolution in microbial populations. ISME J 11, 2181–2194 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1038/ismej.2017.69
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/ismej.2017.69