Chiasmata and Adaptation

Question

We know that during the crossing over of meiosis II, some portions of the paternal chromosome recombine with the maternal chromosome along the  chiasmata. And the number of chiasmata varies.
My question is this: If the crossing over is responsible for genetic variation, then does the number of chiasmata increase in the same chromosome in the same species for the sake of the species' survival? And if so, what factors contribute towards increasing that number?

Maximilian Press · Answer

The number of recombination events (chiasmata) varies dramatically from species to species.
It is also unlikely that this number has any universal relationship to selection, though for specific cases it has been shown that selection can change recombination frequency.
For some more information about the processes controlling this in present-day species and the inferred mechanisms driving among-species variation in recombination frequency, you might see this paper.

Chiasmata and Adaptation

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