Rational evolutionary design: The theory of in vitro protein evolution - ScienceDirect.com
sciencedirect.com
Directed protein evolution hacks Darwin's own algorithm in a test tube — revealing how random mutation plus selection can be engineered to outpace billions of years of natural evolution.
Directed EvolutionNatural SelectionAdaptationismRational Design
Theory Briefing
- Directed evolution combines random mutagenesis and powerful search techniques to engineer proteins with improved properties in vitro.
- The approach mirrors natural selection but compresses evolutionary timescales from millennia into days, challenging assumptions about biological design.
- Rational design principles are layered onto evolutionary search, blending human intention with blind variation — a real-world test of adaptationist theory.