Editing Mutation (section)

== Role in evolution ==
By introducing novel genetic qualities to a population of organisms, de novo mutations play a critical role in the combined forces of evolutionary change. However, the weight of genetic diversity generated by mutational change is often considered a generally "weak" evolutionary force.<ref name="The population genetics of mutation"/> Although the random emergence of mutations alone provides the basis for genetic variation across all organic life, this force must be taken in consideration alongside all evolutionary forces at play. Spontaneous de novo mutations as cataclysmic events of speciation depend on factors introduced by [[natural selection]], genetic flow, and [[genetic drift]]. For example, smaller populations with heavy mutational input (high rates of mutation) are prone to increases of genetic variation which lead to speciation in future generations. In contrast, larger populations tend to see lesser effects of newly introduced mutated traits. In these conditions, selective forces diminish the frequency of mutated alleles, which are most often deleterious, over time.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Amicone |first1=Massimo |last2=Gordo |first2=Isabel |title=Molecular signatures of resource competition: Clonal interference favors ecological diversification and can lead to incipient speciation |journal=Evolution; International Journal of Organic Evolution |date=2021 |volume=75 |issue=11 |pages=2641–2657 |publisher=International Journal of Organic Evolution |doi=10.1111/evo.14315 |pmid=34341983 |pmc=9292366 }}</ref>