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Gene drives are a way to spread a modification to all of a population because the genetic change has more than a 50% chance of making it into a gamete, all the
by JulianMorrison 5y ago
Gene drives are a way to spread a modification to all of a population because the genetic change has more than a 50% chance of making it into a gamete, all the way up to 100%, so it multiplies up over generations.
And yes it can be combined with a generational ticking time-bomb.
- jvanderbot 5y agoOk, honest question: What if there's two populations that don't mix? A Gene drive doesn't just teleport, right?
- JulianMorrison 5y agoIf they literally never mix, it doesn't reach the population it isn't in. But that's a bigger ask than you'd think. Stuff moves around, on its own, and often, on humans and human artefacts. Like for example, mosquitoes breeding in a puddle on a boat. This is basically a worry people have about gene drives, that they will jump from places where they are wanted, to wild populations that are doing nobody any harm, and eradicate whole species.