Mutualism breakdown underpins evolutionary rescue in an obligate cross-feeding bacterial consortium
Ignacio J. Melero‐Jiménez; Yael Sorokin; Ami Merlin; Jiawei Li; Alejandro Couce; Jonathan Friedman · 2025 · Nature Communications
WASTE classifies this as Negative / Null Result Report · AI classification, approximate
The study found no significant effect — useful as a negative control or null benchmark for your own design.
Abstract
Populations facing lethal environmental change can escape extinction through rapid genetic adaptation, a process known as evolutionary rescue. Despite extensive study, evolutionary rescue is largely unexplored in mutualistic communities, where it is likely constrained by the less adaptable partner. Here, we explored empirically the likelihood, population dynamics, and genetic mechanisms underpinning evolutionary rescue in an obligate mutualism involving cross-feeding of amino acids between auxotrophic Escherichia coli strains. We found that over 80% of populations overcame a severe decline whe
Abstract by Ignacio J. Melero‐Jiménez; Yael Sorokin; Ami Merlin; Jiawei Li; Alejandro Couce; Jonathan Friedman, Nature Communications (2025) — licensed CC BY 4.0.
About to run something similar?
Run an AI Precheck on your own design to catch failure modes like this one before you spend the time. Your first desk check is free.
Related failures
Power and Predictive Accuracy of Polygenic Risk Scores
Negative / Null Result ReportLocoregional Recurrence After Sentinel Lymph Node Dissection With or Without Axillary Dissection in Patients With Sentinel Lymph Node Metastases
Negative / Null Result ReportCritical aspects of using bacterial cell viability assays with the fluorophores SYTO9 and propidium iodide
Negative / Null Result ReportAlpelisib plus fulvestrant for PIK3CA-mutated, hormone receptor-positive, human epidermal growth factor receptor-2–negative advanced breast cancer: final overall survival results from SOLAR-1
Negative / Null Result ReportA randomized placebo-controlled trial of idebenone in Leber’s hereditary optic neuropathy
Negative / Null Result ReportThe CAFA challenge reports improved protein function prediction and new functional annotations for hundreds of genes through experimental screens
WASTE indexes this work — it does not host or republish it. Failure-type classification is automated and approximate.
Metadata source: OpenAlex · DOI 10.1038/s41467-025-58742-1