How a #parasite gave up sex to find more hosts—and why its victory won't last https://phys.org/news/2026-01-parasite-gave-sex-hosts-victory.html

Host range expansion of asexual parasite can be explained by loss of adaptions in Muller’s Ratchet https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-025-65843-4

"an asexual lineage of #Giardia managed to infect a wider range of hosts than its sexual ancestor... at a cost. Because these #parasites don't exchange genetic material, harmful mutations build up over time, leading to eventual collapse"

#Protists #Microbes #Evolution

How a #parasite gave up sex to find more hosts—and why its victory won't last https://phys.org/news/2026-01-parasite-gave-sex-hosts-victory.html

Host range expansion of asexual parasite can be explained by loss of adaptions in Muller’s Ratchet https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-025-65843-4

"an asexual lineage of #Giardia managed to infect a wider range of hosts than its sexual ancestor... at a cost. Because these #parasites don't exchange genetic material, harmful mutations build up over time, leading to eventual collapse"

#Protists #Microbes #Evolution