양성 생식을 하는 종의 Mitochondria는 모계 유전된다. 그러므로 부계의 Mitochondria는 그 개체와 함께 소멸될 운명에 처해 있는 것이다. Mitochondria 유전자의 입장에선 더 많은 암컷을 자식으로 만들 수록 이익이 된다. 물론 개체의 입장에서 그런 결과는 종의 멸종이다.
그러나 식물에서 실제로 그러한 사례가 보고되고 있다. 웅성불임이라 불리는 이 현상은 Mitochondria 유전자에 의해 불임의 꽃가루가 만들어지는 것으로 알려져 있다. 진화는 평화로운 공생이 아니다. 유전자와 개체들은 계속해서 경쟁하고 있으며, 필요에 따라 평화로운 정전협정을 맺을 뿐이다. --김우재
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Consider the following example: in most multicellular organisms, an individual obtains all its mitochondria through the egg cell from its mother. The sperm cell from the father usually does not contain any mitochondria. So, from the point of view of mitochondria, the production of male offspring is a waste of time and resources. The mitochondria that a female passes to a son will not be passed to his offspring. They will die with the son. In contrast, the more daughters that a female produces, the more mitochondria it will pass to the next generation. If a female puts all its energy into producing daughters, its mitochondria will do better, and will increase in numbers in the population.
Consider the following example: in most multicellular organisms, an individual obtains all its mitochondria through the egg cell from its mother. The sperm cell from the father usually does not contain any mitochondria. So, from the point of view of mitochondria, the production of male offspring is a waste of time and resources. The mitochondria that a female passes to a son will not be passed to his offspring. They will die with the son. In contrast, the more daughters that a female produces, the more mitochondria it will pass to the next generation. If a female puts all its energy into producing daughters, its mitochondria will do better, and will increase in numbers in the population.
Of course, it is not in the best interests of the organism itself to produce only daughters. Its genes will generally do better if it produces an equal number of sons and daughters. But the interests of the organism has not stopped mitochondria in a number of species from manipulating their host organism to produce a higher proportion of females. For example, in some hermaphrodite plants, the genes of the mitochondria operate to inhibit the development by the plant of male pollen, and instead enhance the production of the female seeds that pass mitochondria to the next generation. These mitochondria will out-compete any mitochondria that cooperate with the plant and do not pursue their own interests at the expense of the plant.
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See also MitochondriaEve