The estimation of mutation rates when premeiotic events are involved

Abstract

When mutation or recombination events occur premeiotically, the distribution of exceptional individuals among the offspring will be “clustered” as opposed to binomial. Even though the exact nature of the clustering is usually unknown, unbiased methods for measuring mutation rate and determining the precision of these measurements are given to replace a biased method now frequently used. When clustering is pronounced, the unweighted average mutation rate is found to be a more efficient estimator than the usual average weighted by family size. Methods of statistical inference and optimal experimental design in the absence of specific knowledge of the mechanism of clustering are also discussed.