genetic drift

American  

noun

1. random changes in the frequency of alleles in a gene pool, usually of small populations.

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genetic drift Scientific  

1. Variation in the frequency of a gene in a small isolated population, thought to be due to random chance rather than natural selection.

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genetic drift Cultural  

1. A term that describes the random fluctuations in a gene pool over time. In large populations, the effects of genetic drift are negligible. (Compare natural selection.)

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Etymology

Origin of genetic drift

First recorded in 1955–60

Compare meaning

How does genetic-drift compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• gene flow vs. genetic drift

Example Sentences

Interestingly, about half of these adaptive signals were detectable only in the oldest time periods, meaning they later vanished due to genetic drift or were masked by extensive population mixing.

From Science Daily • Nov. 19, 2024

Its genetic drift is significantly different from BA.4 and BA.5, the variants last year's bivalent boosters were targeted against.

From Salon • Sep. 12, 2023

One way to tell the difference is speed: Under extreme conditions, natural selection can make a mutation spread far faster than genetic drift can.

From New York Times • Oct. 19, 2022

They think random genetic drift is driving some of the differences.

From Science Magazine • Aug. 24, 2022

However, in all populations, mutation, natural selection, genetic drift, and migration act to change allele frequencies.

From Textbooks • Apr. 25, 2013