Protection of Recessive and Dominant Traits in a Subdivided Population with General Migration Structure

Abstract

The problem of migration-selection interaction in a subdivided population affecting a recessive allele is studied. Explicit conditions for protection of a recessive allele are determined, accessible for any migration structure. A specific example and appropriate formulae are given. The result applies whether soft or hard selection is assumed. With a dominant or recessive-trait, fixation of the respective alleles cannot coexist as stable alternatives. Interpretations and further applications of the conditions are given for some special migration patterns, including the stepping-stone migration mode and the generalized Island model gene flow.