Eigen's Error Threshold and Mutational Meltdown in a Quasispecies Model

TL;DR

This paper presents a simplified model of interacting populations to analyze Eigen's error threshold and mutational meltdown, revealing that population extinction can occur prior to reaching the error threshold.

Contribution

It introduces a toy model that captures the dynamics of mutational meltdown and error thresholds in populations sharing limited resources.

Findings

Mutational meltdown can cause population extinction before the error threshold.

The phase diagram shows distinct regions for meltdown and error threshold transitions.

Shared resource constraints influence the population's stability and transition points.

Abstract

We introduce a toy model for interacting populations connected by mutations and limited by a shared resource. We study the presence of Eigen's error threshold and mutational meltdown. The phase diagram of the system shows that the extinction of the whole population due to mutational meltdown can occur well before an eventual error threshold transition.