> genetic selection through breeding, which has been done for thousands of years and has produced many of the domesticated animals and plants (and even bees!) we humans exploit today.

I will skip past the discussion on whether or not bees are domesticated. Breeding is based on the appearance of unusual variations, and selecting from these. Or, deliberately trying to "produce" varieties with certain characters, but necessarily relying upon the underlying evolutionary mechanisms to produce variation (no variation = nothing new). Herein lies the rub: evolution is the result of a grab bag of genetic changes, not just variation caused by copy errors and random point mutations. For example

> Genomes evolve through large events of gene deletions, duplications, insertions, and genomes rearrangements rather than a gradual adaptative process. Genomes are dynamic and chimeric entities with gene repertoires that result from vertical and horizontal acquisitions as well as de novo gene creation. 

> Transposable elements and retroviruses are found in most genomes, can be pathogenic and are widely used as gene-delivery and functional genomics tools. The DNA sequence, chromatin and nuclear context, and cellular proteins cooperate in guiding integration in eukaryotic genomes, leading to a remarkable diversity of insertion site distribution and evolutionary strategies.

Transposable elements as vectors for gene delivery or functional genomic studies:

> The ability to stably integrate into the host genome is a property of transposable elements (TEs) that is central to their use as biotechnological tools. Their applications range from functional genomics in cells or animals to gene therapy for the treatment of human genetic diseases. 

> Retrovirus-derived vectors ensure efficient gene transfer and long-lasting expression, and are commonly used to investigate the function of a gene of interest or in functional screens with complementary DNA (cDNA) libraries. Murine leukaemia virus (MLV)-based vectors were key to gene therapy advancement.

The point is, evolution is not an orderly discreet process, it involves many strange gene alterations. Some of these natural processes have been co-opted to produce genetically modified organisms. 

PLB

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