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Genetic pollution is a term for uncontrolled[1][2] gene flow into wild populations. It is defined as "the dispersal of contaminated altered genes from genetically engineered organisms to natural organisms, esp. by cross-pollination",[3] but has come to be used in some broader ways. It is related to the population genetics concept of gene flow, and genetic rescue, which is genetic material intentionally introduced to increase the fitness of a population.[4] It is called genetic pollution when it negatively impacts the fitness of a population, such as through outbreeding depression and the introduction of unwanted phenotypes which can lead to extinction.
Conservation biologists and conservationists have used the term to describe gene flow from domestic, feral, and non-native species into wild indigenous species, which they consider undesirable. They promote awareness of the effects of introduced invasive species that may "hybridize with native species, causing genetic pollution". In the fields of agriculture, agroforestry and animal husbandry, genetic pollution is used to describe gene flows between genetically engineered species and wild relatives. The use of the word "pollution" is meant to convey the idea that mixing genetic information is bad for the environment, but because the mixing of genetic information can lead to a variety of outcomes, "pollution" may not always be the most accurate descriptor.
- ^ Boffey PM (December 13, 1983). "Italy's Wild Dogs Winning Darwinian Battle". The New York Times.
Although wolves and dogs have always lived in close contact in Italy and have presumably mated in the past, the newly worrisome element, in Dr. Boitani's opinion, is the increasing disparity in numbers, which suggests that interbreeding will become fairly common. As a result, genetic pollution of the wolf gene pool might reach irreversible levels, he warned. By hybridization, dogs can easily absorb the wolf genes and destroy the wolf, as it is, he said. The wolf might survive as a more doglike animal, better adapted to living close to people, he said, but it would not be what we today call a wolf.
- ^ Ellstrand NC (2001). "When Transgenes Wander, Should We Worry?". Plant Physiol. 125 (4): 1543–1545. doi:10.1104/pp.125.4.1543. PMC 1539377. PMID 11299333.
- ^ "the definition of genetic pollution". Dictionary.com. Archived from the original on 2018-04-30. Retrieved 2018-04-30.
- ^ Waller, Donald M. (June 2015). "Genetic rescue: a safe or risky bet?". Molecular Ecology. 24 (11): 2595–2597. Bibcode:2015MolEc..24.2595W. doi:10.1111/mec.13220. ISSN 1365-294X. PMID 26013990. S2CID 11573077.