A process where organisms or traits that would normally be selected for are instead selected against, or where the reverse selection occurs.
From counter- + selection (from Latin selectus, chosen). Used in evolutionary biology to describe situations where natural selection works opposite to expected outcomes.
In genetics, counterselection is when evolution seems to pick the 'bad' traits—like when bacteria resistant to antibiotics get weeded out by drugs, only for new vulnerabilities to emerge later.
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