On the Origin of DNA Genomes: Evolution of the Division of Labor between Template and Catalyst in Model Replicator Systems
Figure 2
The evolution of the transcription system in the surface model.
The model was initialized such that the system consisted of a population of RNA polymerase (Rp) and parasites. The simulation was first run with the mutation converting Rp into Dp disabled (). After the system reached evolutionary equilibrium (panel A), the mutation was enabled (
), and the resulting evolutionary dynamics are depicted in panel B to D. The larger panels depict snapshots of simulations taken at different times as indicated above panels. The color coding is indicated at the bottom of the figure. RNA and DNA are not distinguished. The timescale is scaled such that it has the same meaning as that of the ordinary differential equation model that describes the replicator dynamics with the same rate constants as in the CA model (the timescale is scaled in this manner throughout the paper). The smaller panels within the larger panels depict a two-dimensional histogram of
and
. See the main text for the description for each panel. The parameters (rate constants) used in this simulation were as follows:
(replication);
(decay);
(diffusion);
(parasite advantage);
(mutation rate of
and
);
(mutation step);
(mutation rate from Rp to Dp);
(mutation rate to parasites). The size of CA was 1024×1024 squares. The boundary had no flux.