Mutations

 Mutations Everywhere

    Darwin's Postulates are the following:
1) Individuals within species are variable; 

2) Some of these variations are passed on to offspring; 

3) In every generation, more offspring are produced than can survive; and

4) The survival and reproduction of individuals are not random; the individuals who survive and go on to reproduce the most are those with the most favorable variation, and they are naturally selected. It follows logically from these that the characteristics of the population will change with each subsequent generation until the population becomes distinctly different from the original.

    Keeping those in mind, I do think that mutation rates can evolve. The genetic makeup of an organism, environmental impacts, diet, or other mutations could very will effect how that particular mutation behaves. We already know that mutations are random and what can help guide an organism or species into evolution, so I find it unlikely that mutations would not also evolve as, say, a species does. 

    An example would be a study conducted by Kelly Harris and Jonathan Pritchard in 2017 at Stanford University, titled "Rapid evolution of the human mutation spectrum." They found that the mutational spectra was substantially different among species, human continental groups, and some more closely-related populations. They closely examined an increased TCC --> TTC signal's mutation rate found in Europeans, and suggested that it indicates a "burst of mutations from about 15,000 to 2000 years ago," possibly due to the appearance, drifts, and "ultimate elimination of a genetic modifier of mutation rate." They concluded that their results would suggest that mutation rates can evolve "markedly over short evolutionary timescales and suggest the possibility of mapping mutational modifiers." 

    I think that mutation rates could be adaptive similarly to how an organism is adaptive. Outside stressors could impact how the mutation behaves, similarly to, say, Darwin's Finches. Their environmental stresses forced them to adapt so that they could survive. I think that mutations would do the same thing if the right stressors were pushed onto them.

Obligatory memes, as usual.

Sources:

Barnes-Sarvney, P., & Sarvney, T. E. (2014). What are the Four Postulates presented in Charles Darwin's on the origin of Species? - the Handy Biology answer book. Retrieved February 26, 2021, from https://www.papertrell.com/apps/preview/The-Handy-Biology-Answer-Book/Handy%20Answer%20book/What-are-the-four-postulates-presented-in-Charles-Darwin-s-O/001137031/content/SC/52cb02a282fad14abfa5c2e0_default.html

Harris, K., & Pritchard, J. K. (2017). Rapid evolution of the human mutation spectrum. ELife. doi:10.7554/elife.24284.001