Natural selection actively maintains and reduces genetic variation within populations
the verdict
SUPPORTED
the evidence backs this
confidence 86/100
Natural selection both actively maintains genetic variation (such as through balancing selection) and reduces it (through positive directional and background selection).
Evidence for · 4
Background Selection Does Not Mimic the Patterns of Genetic Diversity Produced by Selective Sweeps
2020 · cited by 60
The paper discusses how negative and positive selection actively shape and reduce diversity across the genome.
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More for · 3
Selection Balancing at Innate Immune Genes: Adaptive Polymorphism Maintenance in Toll-Like Receptors
2022 · cited by 32
The review details how balancing selection mechanisms actively maintain variation in specific genes.
A century of theories of balancing selection.
2026 · cited by 5
The review outlines how balancing selection acts as a major evolutionary force to maintain genetic variation in populations.
Balancing selection drives maintenance of genetic variation in
<i>Drosophila</i>
antimicrobial peptides
2018 · cited by 3
The study demonstrates that balancing selection actively maintains adaptive diversity in antimicrobial peptide genes.