article published yes Daven C. Presgraves author R. Kelly Dawe author Kelly A. Dyer author Lila Fishman author Soumitra A. Bhide author Sasha L. Bradshaw author Meghan J. Brady author Alejandro Burga author Cécile Courret author Brandon L. Fagen author Ana Beatriz Stein Machado Ferretti author Réka K Kelemen author 48D3F8DE-F248-11E8-B48F-1D18A9856A870000-0002-8489-9281 Jun Kitano author Yiran Liu author Emiliano Martí author Theresa Erlenbach author Josephine A. Reinhardt author Laura Ross author Jan Niklas Runge author Callie M. Swanepoel author Beatriz Vicoso author 49E1C5C6-F248-11E8-B48F-1D18A9856A870000-0002-4579-8306 Aaron A. Vogan author Anna K. Lindholm author Amanda M. Larracuente author Robert L. Unckless author BeVi department Meiotic drivers are selfish genetic elements that gain transmission advantages by distorting equal, Mendelian segregation. For decades, biologists have considered meiotic drivers as interesting, albeit esoteric, case studies. It is now clear, however, that meiotic drive is more common and phylogenetically widespread than previously supposed. Indeed, intensive study of a few well-known cases has begun to reveal the evolutionary genomic consequences of meiotic drive. We argue here that many features of genome evolution, content, and organization that are seemingly inexplicable by organismal adaptation or nearly neutral processes are instead best accounted for by recurrent histories of meiotic drive. We review how meiotic drive can affect the evolution of sequences, gene copy numbers, genes with functions in meiosis and gametogenesis, signatures of “selection,” chromosome rearrangements, and karyotype evolution. We also explore the interactions of meiotic drive elements with other classes of selfish genetic elements, including satellite DNAs, transposable elements, and with the endogenous host genes involved in drive suppression. Finally, we argue that some aspects of drive-mediated genome evolution are now sufficiently well established that we might reverse the direction of discovery—rather than ask how drive affects genome evolution, we can use genome data to discover new putative drive elements. https://research-explorer.ista.ac.at/download/21409/21414/2026_MolecularBioEvolution_Presgraves.pdf application/pdfno Oxford University Press2026 eng 1537-1719 4158906210.1093/molbev/msag020 432 D. C. Presgraves <i>et al.</i>, “The evolutionary genomics of meiotic drive,” <i>Molecular Biology and Evolution</i>, vol. 43, no. 2. Oxford University Press, 2026. Presgraves, Daven C., et al. “The Evolutionary Genomics of Meiotic Drive.” <i>Molecular Biology and Evolution</i>, vol. 43, no. 2, msag020, Oxford University Press, 2026, doi:<a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msag020">10.1093/molbev/msag020</a>. Presgraves DC, Dawe RK, Dyer KA, et al. The evolutionary genomics of meiotic drive. <i>Molecular Biology and Evolution</i>. 2026;43(2). doi:<a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msag020">10.1093/molbev/msag020</a> Presgraves, D. C., Dawe, R. K., Dyer, K. A., Fishman, L., Bhide, S. A., Bradshaw, S. L., … Unckless, R. L. (2026). The evolutionary genomics of meiotic drive. <i>Molecular Biology and Evolution</i>. Oxford University Press. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msag020">https://doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msag020</a> Presgraves DC, Dawe RK, Dyer KA, Fishman L, Bhide SA, Bradshaw SL, Brady MJ, Burga A, Courret C, Fagen BL, Machado Ferretti ABS, Kelemen RK, Kitano J, Liu Y, Martí E, Erlenbach T, Reinhardt JA, Ross L, Runge JN, Swanepoel CM, Vicoso B, Vogan AA, Lindholm AK, Larracuente AM, Unckless RL. 2026. The evolutionary genomics of meiotic drive. Molecular Biology and Evolution. 43(2), msag020. D.C. Presgraves, R.K. Dawe, K.A. Dyer, L. Fishman, S.A. Bhide, S.L. Bradshaw, M.J. Brady, A. Burga, C. Courret, B.L. Fagen, A.B.S. Machado Ferretti, R.K. Kelemen, J. Kitano, Y. Liu, E. Martí, T. Erlenbach, J.A. Reinhardt, L. Ross, J.N. Runge, C.M. Swanepoel, B. Vicoso, A.A. Vogan, A.K. Lindholm, A.M. Larracuente, R.L. Unckless, Molecular Biology and Evolution 43 (2026). Presgraves, Daven C., R. Kelly Dawe, Kelly A. Dyer, Lila Fishman, Soumitra A. Bhide, Sasha L. Bradshaw, Meghan J. Brady, et al. “The Evolutionary Genomics of Meiotic Drive.” <i>Molecular Biology and Evolution</i>. Oxford University Press, 2026. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msag020">https://doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msag020</a>. 214092026-03-08T23:01:45Z2026-03-09T10:33:04Z