Time: 14.00h

Location: Lectureroom G, F207

‘Experimental evolution of bet-hedging’

Bet hedging is a risk-spreading strategy that is based on stochastic switching between different survival tactics. Evolutionary theory predicts that bet-hedging is favored in unpredictable environments. While indeed bet-hedging strategies are found in organisms that face fluctuating demands for survival, direct empirical evidence of an adaptive origin of this behavior is lacking. In this lecture, I will describe the de novo evolution of bet hedging in experimental bacterial populations, and provide insight into the underlying ecological and genetic mechanisms.