{
  "abstract": "The distribution of fitness effects (DFE) describes the selection coefficients of newly arising mutations and fundamentally influences population genetic processes. However, the extent and mechanisms of differences in the DFE for non-synonymous mutations have not been systematically investigated across species with divergent phylogenetic histories and ecologies. Here, we inferred the DFE in natural populations of 11 animal (sub)species, including humans, mice, fin whales, vaquitas, wolves, collared flycatchers, pied flycatchers, halictid bees, Drosophila, and mosquitoes. We found that mammals have a higher proportion of strongly deleterious mutations (defined as s≤−0.01; 22% to 47% in mammals; 0.0% to 5.4% in insects and birds) and a lower proportion of weakly deleterious mutations than insects and birds. Further, the DFE co-varies with phylogeny, such that the mean mutation effects are more similar in closely related species (Pagel’s λ = 0.84, P = 0.01). Next, we investigated whether various summary statistics of the DFE were related to variation in life-history traits across these organisms. We found some support for genome size, body mass, and long-term effective population size being correlated with the DFE. Overall, our findings are consistent with predictions derived independently from the Fisher’s Geometric Model (FGM), which defines organismal complexity as the number of phenotypes under selection. FGM predicts that mutations are more deleterious in complex organisms, while strongly deleterious mutations occur more frequently in smaller populations. Our study demonstrates strong phylogenetic signal in the evolution of a fundamental population genetics parameter, and proposes that, through mechanisms of epistasis, long-term population size and organismal complexity could be underlying variation in the DFE across animals.\n\nThe distribution of fitness effects (DFE) describes the impact of mutations on an organism’s ability to reproduce, but how and why does the DFE vary among species? This study analyzes genetic variation from 11 animal species, finding that fitness effects are influenced by phylogeny, population size and organismal complexity.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, United States of America",
    "Department of Integrative Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, California, United States of America",
    "Center for Evolution and Medicine, School of Human Evolution and Social Change, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, United States of America",
    "Advanced Genomics Unit, National Laboratory of Genomics for Biodiversity (Langebio), Center for Research and Advanced Studies (Cinvestav), Irapuato, Guanajuato, Mexico",
    "Department of Biological Sciences, California State University San Marcos, San Marcos, California, United States of America",
    "Department of Genome Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, United States of America",
    "Centro de Ciencias Genómicas, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM), Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico",
    "Bioinformatics Interdepartmental Program, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, United States of America",
    "Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey, United States of America",
    "Conservation Genetics, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance, Escondido, California, United States of America",
    "Department of Biology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, United States of America",
    "Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Chevy Chase, Maryland, United States of America",
    "Marine Mammal and Turtle Division, Southwest Fisheries Science Center, La Jolla, California, United States of America"
  ],
  "article_type": "Research Article",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 16,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Meixi Lin"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Sneha Chakraborty"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Carlos Eduardo G. Amorim"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        3
      ],
      "name": "Sergio F. Nigenda-Morales"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        4
      ],
      "name": "Annabel C. Beichman"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        5
      ],
      "name": "Paulina G. Nuñez-Valencia"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        6
      ],
      "name": "Jonathan C. Mah"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        7
      ],
      "name": "Jacqueline A. Robinson"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        8
      ],
      "name": "Christopher C. Kyriazis"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        9
      ],
      "name": "Christian D. Huber"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        10
      ],
      "name": "Andrew E. Webb"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        11
      ],
      "name": "Sarah D. Kocher"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        12
      ],
      "name": "Frederick I. Archer"
    },
    {
      "name": "Andrés Moreno-Estrada"
    },
    {
      "name": "Robert K. Wayne"
    },
    {
      "name": "Kirk E. Lohmueller"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/da3zyzt0yxae5.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.1371/journal.pbio.3003976",
  "fulltext_url": "https://journals.plos.org/plosbiology/article?id=10.1371/journal.pbio.3003976",
  "id": "da3zyzt0yxae5",
  "issns": [
    "1545-7885"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://journals.plos.org/plosbiology/article?id=10.1371/journal.pbio.3003976",
  "language": null,
  "licence": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "licence_label": "CC BY 4.0",
  "licence_source": "journal",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "openalex",
      "1311|Evolution and Genetic Dynamics"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Biology and life sciences/Evolutionary biology/Evolutionary systematics/Phylogenetics"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Biology and life sciences/Evolutionary biology/Evolutionary systematics/Phylogenetics/Animal phylogenetics"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Biology and life sciences/Genetics/Mutation/Deletion mutation"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Biology and life sciences/Organisms/Eukaryota/Animals/Invertebrates/Arthropoda/Insects"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Biology and life sciences/Organisms/Eukaryota/Animals/Invertebrates/Arthropoda/Insects/Drosophila/Drosophila melanogaster"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Biology and life sciences/Organisms/Eukaryota/Animals/Vertebrates/Amniotes/Mammals"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Biology and life sciences/Organisms/Eukaryota/Animals/Vertebrates/Amniotes/Mammals/Wolves"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Biology and life sciences/Population biology/Population metrics/Population size"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Biology and life sciences/Taxonomy/Evolutionary systematics/Phylogenetics"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Biology and life sciences/Taxonomy/Evolutionary systematics/Phylogenetics/Animal phylogenetics"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Biology and life sciences/Zoology/Animal phylogenetics"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Biology and life sciences/Zoology/Animals/Invertebrates/Arthropoda/Insects"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Biology and life sciences/Zoology/Animals/Invertebrates/Arthropoda/Insects/Drosophila/Drosophila melanogaster"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Biology and life sciences/Zoology/Animals/Vertebrates/Amniotes/Mammals"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Biology and life sciences/Zoology/Animals/Vertebrates/Amniotes/Mammals/Wolves"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Biology and life sciences/Zoology/Entomology/Insects"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Biology and life sciences/Zoology/Entomology/Insects/Drosophila/Drosophila melanogaster"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Computer and information sciences/Data management/Taxonomy/Evolutionary systematics/Phylogenetics"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Computer and information sciences/Data management/Taxonomy/Evolutionary systematics/Phylogenetics/Animal phylogenetics"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Research and analysis methods/Animal studies/Experimental organism systems/Animal models/Drosophila melanogaster"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Research and analysis methods/Animal studies/Experimental organism systems/Model organisms/Drosophila melanogaster"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Research and analysis methods/Model organisms/Drosophila melanogaster"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7211937203",
  "pdf_url": "https://journals.plos.org/plosbiology/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pbio.3003976&type=printable",
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-09-08",
  "publisher": "Public Library of Science",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/da3zyzt0yxae5.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:17:56Z",
      "native_id": "10.1371/journal.pbio.3003976",
      "source": "plos",
      "url": "https://journals.plos.org/plosbiology/article?id=10.1371/journal.pbio.3003976"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "biology",
      "origin": "plos:zoology",
      "subfield": "zoology-behaviour"
    }
  ],
  "title": "The distribution of fitness effects of nonsynonymous mutations varies phylogenetically across animals",
  "title_text": "The distribution of fitness effects of nonsynonymous mutations varies phylogenetically across animals",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:17:56Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/da3zyzt0yxae5",
  "venue": "PLOS Biology",
  "versions": []
}