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PMID: 20308091 Published · ppublish English Journal Article Review

Measurements of spontaneous rates of mutations in the recent past and the near future.

Philosophical transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological sciences ·Vol. 365 ·No. 1544 ·2010-04-27 ·Pages 1169-76

Kondrashov FA, Kondrashov AS

Abstract

The rate of spontaneous mutation in natural populations is a fundamental parameter for many evolutionary phenomena. Because the rate of mutation is generally low, most of what is currently known about mutation has been obtained through indirect, complex and imprecise methodological approaches. However, in the past few years genome-wide sequencing of closely related individuals has made it possible to estimate the rates of mutation directly at the level of the DNA, avoiding most of the problems associated with using indirect methods. Here, we review the methods used in the past with an emphasis on next generation sequencing, which may soon make the accurate measurement of spontaneous mutation rates a matter of routine.

MeSH Terms
Base Sequence Evolution, Molecular Genetic Variation Humans Mutation Sequence Analysis, DNA/methods
Authors & Affiliations
2 authors, click to expand affiliations / ORCID
Kondrashov Fyodor A
Bioinformatics and Genomics Programme, Centre for Genomic Regulation, , C/Dr. Aiguader 88, Barcelona Biomedical Research Park Building 08003, Barcelona, Spain. fyodor.kondrashov@crg.es
Kondrashov Alexey S
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Article Info
Journal
Philosophical transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological sciences
Abbr.
Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci
ISSN
1471-2970
DOI
10.1098/rstb.2009.0286
Email
fyodor.kondrashov@crg.es
Published
2010-04-27
Pages
1169-76
Language
English
Region
England
NLM ID
7503623
PMCID
PMC2871817
Subset
IM
External Links
PubMed source DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2009.0286 PMC Full Text View journal details
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