How Does Primarily Operate On Genes By Carmen Sapienza

In “Selection Does Primarily Operate on Genes”, Carmen Sapienza argues that selection primarily acts upon genes. Sapienza supports this notion by defining Natural Selection as a process that allow one to distinguish between “biological entities”, and this process confers a reproductive advantage upon one of the “biological entities”. For Sapienza, this biological entity is defined primarily as the gene. Sapienza argues that genes are directly the main targets of selection. For direct selection, Sapienza states that genes can replicate themselves and disperse these replications throughout a particular genome. The most beneficial and fit gene will survive in the gene pool, while the least advantageous gene will ultimately be outcompeted. For direct selection, a counterargument is that although genes do experience changes in frequencies throughout a particular genome, genes are not directly affected by selective factors. Instead, the gene products are being selected upon by the environment. I believe that Sapienza’s usage of “direct” is mistaken because the genes are not physically competing in an environment. For example, if a gene A codes for small fins, while gene B codes for large fins,
Although gene products are being acted upon by the environment, the genes themselves experience shifts in frequencies, causing a certain gene to be dominant in the gene pool, while another gene is not as prevalent. In addition to this counter, Sapienza would argue that selective factors influence gene frequencies to shift, thereby directly acting upon the genes. Ignoring the process of selection, Sapienza would argue that the genes would primarily be selected due to his definition of Natural Selection. With this in mind, even though gene products are present and active in the environment, the core of the product being influenced is still the