The influence of phylogenetic uncertainty on the detection of positive darwinian selection

Marcio R. Pie*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticle (journal)peer-review

9 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

The power of maximum likelihood tests of positive selection on protein-coding genes depends heavily on detecting and accounting for potential biases in the studied data set. Although the influence of transition: transversion and codon biases have been investigated in detail, little is known about how inaccuracy in the phylogeny used during the calculations affects the performance of these tests. In this study, 3 empirical data sets are analyzed using sets of simulated topologies corresponding to low, intermediate, and high levels of phylogenetic uncertainty. The detection of positive selection was largely unaffected by errors in the underlying phylogeny. However, the number of sites identified as being under positive selection tended to be overestimated.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)2274-2278
Number of pages5
JournalMolecular Biology and Evolution
Volume23
Issue number12
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Dec 2006

Keywords

  • Adaptive evolution
  • Likelihood ratio tests
  • Molecular phylogeny

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'The influence of phylogenetic uncertainty on the detection of positive darwinian selection'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this