@article {Tanaka126722, author = {Hidenori Tanaka and Howard A. Stone and David R. Nelson}, title = {Spatial gene drives and pushed genetic waves}, elocation-id = {126722}, year = {2017}, doi = {10.1101/126722}, publisher = {Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory}, abstract = {Gene drives have the potential to rapidly replace a harmful wild-type allele with a gene drive allele engineered to have desired functionalities. However, an accidental or premature release of a gene drive construct to the natural environment could damage an ecosystem irreversibly. Thus, it is important to understand the spatiotemporal consequences of the super-Mendelian population genetics prior to potential applications. Here, we employ a reaction-diffusion model for sexually reproducing diploid organisms to study how a locally introduced gene drive allele spreads to replace the wild-type allele, even though it posses a selective disadvantage s \> 0. Using methods developed by N. Barton and collaborators, we show that socially responsible gene drives require 0.5 \< s \< 0.697, a rather narrow range. In this {\textquotedblleft}pushed wave{\textquotedblright} regime, the spatial spreading of gene drives will be initiated only when the initial frequency distribution is above a threshold profile called {\textquotedblleft}critical propagule{\textquotedblright}, which acts as a safeguard against accidental release. We also study how the spatial spread of the pushed wave can be stopped by making gene drives uniquely vulnerable ({\textquotedblleft}sensitizing drive{\textquotedblright}) in a way that is harmless for a wild-type allele. Finally, we show that appropriately sensitized drives in two dimensions can be stopped even by imperfect barriers perforated by a series of gaps.}, URL = {https://www.biorxiv.org/content/early/2017/04/11/126722}, eprint = {https://www.biorxiv.org/content/early/2017/04/11/126722.full.pdf}, journal = {bioRxiv} }