Biologists explain evolution and the consequences of selfish genetic elements
The human genome is littered with “selfish genetic elements”, which do not appear to benefit the host, but only seek to reproduce. Selfish genetic elements can wreak havoc by, for example, distorting sex ratios, impairing fertility, causing dangerous mutations, and potentially even causing population extinction. Biologists at the University of Rochester, including Amanda Larracuente, professor of biology, and Daven Presgraves, University Dean’s Professor of Biology, are using population genomics for the first time to explain the evolution and consequences of known selfish genetic elements. as Segregation Distortion ( SD ). In a paper published in the journal eLife the researchers reported that SD has led to dramatic changes in chromosomal organization and genetic diversity. Sequencing the genome first Researchers use fruit flies as model organisms to study SD , a selfish genetic element that deviates from the rules of just genetic transmission. Fruit flies share about 70 percent of