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What is a genetic modification that would cause a massive chain reaction to possibly horrific effects? (lemmy.ml)

submitted 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) by doomsdayrs@lemmy.ml to c/asklemmy@lemmy.ml

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Let's keep things simple two rules.

No giving sentience, This is a no brainer issue.
Let's keep it to beings under the Animilia kingdom. "mutated virus/bacteria" is a common trope.

To start:

Let's modify ants to have lungs.

Most insects are constrained by the amount of oxygen they can acquire through their exoskeleton.

Imagine how big they can get if they didn't have that constraint?

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[–] Railison@aussie.zone 5 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

A malicious gene drive. Basically, use molecular tools to ensure that a gene is always passed down from a parent to its progeny, regardless of the other parent’s genetic makeup.

Many choices available: propagate resistance to a pesticide for mosquitos, guarantee Huntington’s disease in a family, or crash a population of beneficial species by reducing fertility, to name a few.