The total branch length of sample genealogies in populations of variable size

Abstract

We consider neutral evolution of a large population subject to changes in its population size. For a population with a time-variable carrying capacity we study the distribution of the total branch lengths of its sample genealogies. Within the coalescent approximation we have obtained a general expression - Equation 20 - for the moments of this distribution with a given arbitrary dependence of the population size on time. We investigate how the frequency of population-size variations alters the total branch length. Copyright © 2010 by the Genetics Society of America.