population genetics

American  

noun

1. the branch of genetics concerned with the hereditary makeup of populations.

2. the study of changes in gene frequencies in population of organisms and the effects of such changes on evolution and adaptation.

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population genetics Scientific  

1. The scientific study of the inheritance and prevalence of genes in populations, usually using statistical analysis.

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population genetics Cultural  

1. The study of the genetic composition of populations in order to understand the evolutionary forces that select for a particular gene.

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Etymology

Origin of population genetics

First recorded in 1945–50

Example Sentences

The question of how and why genetic variation arises and is maintained over long periods of time is of key importance to evolutionary biology, population genetics and conservation biology.

From Science Daily • Nov. 17, 2023

Alex Mas Sandoval, a Spanish researcher in population genetics at the University of Bologna, said he was “appalled” when he heard that the Buffalo gunman had tried to use science to justify his actions.

From New York Times • Jun. 9, 2022

Their rationale: They say their population genetics study was cultural, not health-related, and therefore did not fall under the jurisdiction of the NEC or the Philippine Health Research Ethics Board.

From Salon • Mar. 4, 2022

Into this long-running dispute has now stepped the relatively new discipline of population genetics, which has started using ancient DNA to figure out when people moved where.

From BBC • Dec. 30, 2018

Studies in population genetics reinforce Darwin’s understanding that populations—not individual organisms—evolve over time.

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2018