Does Effective Population Size Govern Evolutionary Differences in Telomere Length?

• Published in: Genome biology and evolution Vol. 16; no. 5
• Main Authors: Brown, Lyda M, Elbon, Mia C, Bharadwaj, Ajay, Damle, Gargi, Lachance, Joseph
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Oxford University Press 02.05.2024
• Subjects: Aging; Aging - genetics; Animals; Biological Evolution; Evolution, Molecular; Humans; Natural selection; Population Density; Selection, Genetic; Senescence; Telomere - genetics; Telomere Homeostasis; Telomeres; senescence; effective population size; natural selection; genetic drift; comparative genomics; telomere length
• ISSN: 1759-6653; 1759-6653
• DOI: 10.1093/gbe/evae111

Lengths of telomeres vary by an order of magnitude across mammalian species. Similarly, age- and sex-standardized telomere lengths differ by up to 1 kb (14%) across human populations. How to explain these differences? Telomeres play a central role in senescence and aging, and genes that affect telomere length are likely under weak selection (i.e. telomere length is a trait that is subject to nearly neutral evolution). Importantly, natural selection is more effective in large populations than in small populations. Here, we propose that observed differences in telomere length across species and populations are largely due to differences in effective population sizes. In this perspective, we present preliminary evolutionary genetic evidence supporting this hypothesis and highlight the need for more data.