The environmental cost of cheating to overcome cooperation in simple multicellular organisms

Bob Yirka is a research scientist at Phys.org.

The evolution of cooperation in groups of living creatures has been studied by a group of researchers. In a paper published in the journal Biology Letters, the group describe how they genetically altered a type of green algae.

Scientists have wondered about the factors that led to the evolution of cooperation between humans and animals. There are competing arguments because no one has been able to prove how it happened. The researchers proposed that cheating in cooperative groups should be punished to stop it from becoming the dominant behavior in the group. They turned to simple green algae, a type of creature with two main types of cells, those that replicate by reproduction and those that don't because they make up non-reproductive body parts. The researchers edited their genes in a way that allowed them to reproduce. The algae was left to their own devices.

The researchers expected that the number and proportion of body cells would grow. The researchers exposed the algae to harsh environmental conditions. Half of the reproductive cells were dead and all of the genetically altered cells were dead. The researchers suggest that this finding gives credence to their theory that the group of cheating people paid a penalty for their actions and died because of it.

Similar types of trade-offs can be found in other groups. The evolution of multicellularity in early life may have been influenced by such cooperation.

More information: Marybelle E. Cameron-Pack et al, A personal cost of cheating can stabilize reproductive altruism during the early evolution of clonal multicellularity, Biology Letters (2022). DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2022.0059 Journal information: Biology Letters

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