FSTand genetic diversity in an island model with background selection
Authors: Hasan Asad , Whitlock Michael C. 
Published: March 2024

Background selection, by which selection on deleterious alleles reduces diversity at linked neutral sites, influences patterns of total neutral diversity,πT, and genetic differentiation,FST, in structured populations. The theory of background selection may be split into two regimes: thebackground selection regime, where selection pressures are strong and mutation rates are sufficiently low such that deleterious alleles are at a deterministic mutation-selection balance, and theinterference selection regime, where selection pressures are weak and mutation rates are sufficiently high that deleterious alleles accumulate and interfere with another, leading to selective interference. Previous work has quantified the effects of background selection onπTandFSTonly for deleterious alleles in thebackground selection regime. Furthermore, there is evidence to suggest that migration reduces the effects of background selection onFST, but this has not been fully explained. Here, we derive novel theory to predict the effects of migration on background selection experienced by a subpopulation, and extend previous theory from theinterference selection regimeto make predictions in an island model. Using simulations, we show that this theory best predictsFSTandπT. Moreover, we demonstrate that background selection from weakly deleterious alleles may generate minimal increases inFST, because migration reduces correlated effects on fitness over generations within subpopulations. However, we show that background selection may still cause substantial reductions inπT, particularly for metapopulations with a larger effective population size. Our work further extends the theory of background selection into structured populations, and suggests that background selection will minimally confound locus-to-locusFSTscans.

Author Summary

Most mutations that affect fitness incur deleterious effects and are ultimately removed via natural selection. Consequently, nearby neutral variants may also experience the effects of selection; this is termed background selection. Background selection greatly influences patterns of genetic diversity both between and within populations among virtually all extant species, and is therefore of great interest to geneticists. Previous models of background selection have been primarily restricted to populations with completely random mating. However, it is well known that most natural populations exhibit some form of spatial structure. Here, we explore the effects of background selection in spatially structured populations, and we find that migration between subpopulations may attenuate the effects of background selection acting to increase genetic differentiation among populations. We derive novel theory to account for this effect by considering that individuals with deleterious alleles may migrate out of a local subpopulation prior to being removed by the population via selection. Our work demonstrates that, when migration rates are high, background selection does not substantially influence genetic differentiation among populations. Despite this, we find that background selection may greatly decrease genetic diversity within subpopulations and in the whole metapopulation.