Discovery of 119-million-year-old selfish genes in yeast potentially alters our understanding of how parasitic DNA impacts genome evolution

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eiotic drivers, a type of selfish gene, are indeed selfish. Present in the genomes of nearly all species, including humans, they unfairly transfer their genetic material to more than half of their offspring, sometimes leading to infertility, and decreased organism health. Because of their parasitic potential, their longevity over evolutionary time is believed to be short-lived, until now. Read more…