Red Queen hypothesis
The Red Queen hypothesis proposes that species must constantly adapt to keep up with co-evolving parasites and pathogens, and that this ongoing arms race favors sexual reproduction.
Leigh Van Valen introduced the name in 1973, from the Red Queen’s line in Lewis Carroll: “it takes all the running you can do, to keep in the same place.” Graham Bell and W. D. Hamilton developed the parasite-driven version in the early 1980s as an explanation for the maintenance of sex.
The mechanism
Parasites reproduce faster than their hosts and adapt to the host genotypes they meet most often. A genotype that was resistant yesterday
Continue to read the draft.
Log in and become a supporter to read the full article.
Become a supporter to read the full article.