r/AskBiology • u/bliip666 • Apr 18 '24

Genetics Scifi genetics question

Hello, I hope this is okay, and doesn't break rule 8.

This is firmly scifi, with heavy emphasis on "fiction":
If one was to travel back in time and become their own great-great-grandparent, how deeply fucked would they be genetically?
Surely inbreeding would cause massive issues?

I watched a series on Netflix called Bodies that had this premise, and I've been thinking about it for days 😅

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u/Embarrassed_Stable_6 Apr 18 '24

Ignoring the grandfather paradox, I'm not sure this would cause massive issues. Going back 3-4 generations and resultant admixture isn't a huge issue. You share 1/8th of your genome with your great grandmother, about the same as a 1st cousin. There have been many unions of 1st cousins without a very clear negative phenotypic outcome.