Development of neutral and nearly neutral theories (Q1914182)

We provide a short history of the development of neutral theories of molecular evolution, with emphasis on the early contributions of Motoo Kimura and on the subsequent development of the nearly neutral model, which is the version of the neutral theory that has been able to explain the widest range of phenomena. As this short history demonstrates, population genetics has made remarkable strides in understanding both the phenomenology and the theoretical models of molecular evolution. However, it also demonstrates that we have yet to find a mechanistic theory of molecular evolution that can readily account for all of the phenomenology. Thus, while the 1990s will most likely be a decade dominated by the gathering of data, we would like to call attention to a looming crisis as theoretical investigations lag behind the phenomenology. Perhaps 1990s can also be a decade of joint exploration of all viable models of molecular evolution.