据介绍，物种之间的相互作用催化了多尺度生态网络的演化，包括调节不同群落功能的嵌套和模块化元素。一个常见的假设是，这种复杂的模式形成需要空间隔离或漫长的演化时间。
研究人员证明，在没有空间结构的简单生态条件下，多尺度网络结构可以快速演化。在短短21天中，大肠杆菌和Φ21噬菌体共同演化并多样化，形成了复杂的交叉感染网络。通过测量约10000个噬菌体感染并测试相互作用的遗传基础，研究人员确定了产生多尺度模式每个组成部分的机制。
总之，这一研究结果证明了多尺度网络是如何在寄生虫-宿主系统中演化的，阐明了达尔文的观点，即简单的自适应过程可以产生纠缠的生态相互作用。
附：英文原文
Title: Rapid bacteria-phage coevolution drives the emergence of multiscale networks
Author: Joshua M. Borin, Justin J. Lee, Adriana Lucia-Sanz, Krista R. Gerbino, Joshua S. Weitz, Justin R. Meyer
Issue&Volume: 2023-11-10
Abstract: Interactions between species catalyze the evolution of multiscale ecological networks, including both nested and modular elements that regulate the function of diverse communities. One common assumption is that such complex pattern formation requires spatial isolation or long evolutionary timescales. We show that multiscale network structure can evolve rapidly under simple ecological conditions without spatial structure. In just 21 days of laboratory coevolution, Escherichia coli and bacteriophage Φ21 coevolve and diversify to form elaborate cross-infection networks. By measuring ~10,000 phage-bacteria infections and testing the genetic basis of interactions, we identify the mechanisms that create each component of the multiscale pattern. Our results demonstrate how multiscale networks evolve in parasite-host systems, illustrating Darwin’s idea that simple adaptive processes can generate entangled banks of ecological interactions.
DOI: adi5536
Source: https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adi5536