Nature Reviews Genetics, Published online: 19 May 2026; doi:10.1038/s41576-026-00976-wRed Queen dynamics describe a mode of evolution in which interacting biological entities continually adapt and counteradapt. This Comment discusses the pervasiveness of these dynamics within genomes, which can involve selfish genetic elements, and highlights building evidence that they can even drive compensatory coevolution among subunits of essential protein complexes.
