scholarly journals Sex-Biased Gene Expression Resolves Sexual Conflict through the Evolution of Sex-Specific Genetic Architecture

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alison E. Wright ◽  
Matteo Fumagalli ◽  
Christopher R. Cooney ◽  
Natasha I. Bloch ◽  
Filipe G. Vieira ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Diversity ◽  
Sexual Conflict ◽  
Genetic Architecture ◽  
Balancing Selection ◽  
Genome Diversity ◽  
Regulatory Evolution ◽  
Novel Approach ◽  
Underlying Causes ◽  
Efficient Route ◽  
Males And Females

ABSTRACTMany genes are subject to contradictory selection pressures in males and females, and balancing selection resulting from sexual conflict has the potential to substantially increase standing genetic diversity in populations and thereby act as an important force in adaptation. However, the underlying causes of sexual conflict, and the potential for resolution, remains hotly debated. Using transcriptome resequencing data from male and female guppies, we use a novel approach, combining patterns of genetic diversity and inter-sexual divergence in allele frequency, to distinguish the different scenarios that give rise to sexual conflict, and how this conflict may be resolved through regulatory evolution. We show that reproductive fitness is the main source of sexual conflict, and this is resolved via the evolution of male-biased expression. Furthermore, resolution of sexual conflict produces significant differences in genetic architecture between males and females, which in turn leads to specific alleles influencing sex-specific viability. Together, our findings suggest an important role for sexual conflict in shaping broad patterns of genome diversity, and show that regulatory evolution is a rapid and efficient route to the resolution of conflict.

scholarly journals Sexual conflict over survival in Trinidadian Guppies

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuying Lin ◽  
Iulia Darolti ◽  
Benjamin L. S. Furman ◽  
Pedro Almeida ◽  
Benjamin A. Sandkam ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Y Chromosome ◽  
Sexual Conflict ◽  
Balancing Selection ◽  
Fluctuating Selection ◽  
Allelic Differences ◽  
Show Evidence ◽  
Males And Females ◽  
Male Specific ◽  
Genetic Signatures ◽  
Allelic Differentiation

ABSTRACTSexual conflict over survival produces two distinct population genetic signatures. Fluctuating selection in males and females produces balancing selection. Additionally, at conception, allele frequencies are the same in males and females. However, loci with alleles that benefit the survival of one sex at some survival cost to the other should diverge over the course of a generation. We therefore expect that sexual conflict over survival would produce both signatures of allelic differentiation between the sexes and balancing selection. However, given the substantial mortality costs required to produce allelic differences between males and females, it remains unclear how many loci within the genome, if any at all, experience significant sexual conflict over survival. We assessed the genomes of 120 wild-caught guppies, which are expected to experience substantial predation- and pathogen-induced mortality. We identified a core list of 15 high confidence genes that show allelic differences between male and female adults. However, eight of these show evidence of having duplicated copies on the Y chromosome, suggesting that the male-specific region of the guppy Y chromosome may act as a hotspot for the resolution of conflict. We recovered just seven genes with significant male-female allelic differentiation without evidence of Y duplication, and these show elevated Tajima’s D, consistent with balancing selection from sexual conflict. Only one of these seven genes, Puf60b, shows substantial intersexual FST. Puf60b has roles in cognition and the immune system, suggesting substantial ongoing, unresolved sexual conflict related to predator and pathogen avoidance strategies.

scholarly journals Sex-dependent dominance at a single locus maintains variation in age at maturity in Atlantic salmon

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicola J Barson ◽  
Tutku Aykanat ◽  
Kjetil Hindar ◽  
Matthew Baranski ◽  
Geir H Bolstad ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Conflict ◽  
Balancing Selection ◽  
Age At Maturity ◽  
Sexual Antagonism ◽  
Substantial Impact ◽  
Intralocus Sexual Conflict ◽  
Snp Data ◽  
Fitness Trait ◽  
Males And Females ◽  
Spatially Varying Selection

Males and females share many traits that have a common genetic basis, however selection on these traits often differs between the sexes leading to sexual conflict. Under such sexual antagonism, theory predicts the evolution of genetic architectures that resolve this sexual conflict. Yet, despite intense theoretical and empirical interest, the specific genetic loci behind sexually antagonistic phenotypes have rarely been identified, limiting our understanding of how sexual conflict impacts genome evolution and the maintenance of genetic diversity. Here, we identify a large effect locus controlling age at maturity in 57 salmon populations, an important fitness trait in which selection favours earlier maturation in males than females, and show it is a clear example of sex dependent dominance reducing intralocus sexual conflict and maintaining adaptive variation in wild populations. Using high density SNP data and whole genome re-sequencing, we found that vestigial-like family member 3 (VGLL3) exhibits sex-dependent dominance in salmon, promoting earlier and later maturation in males and females, respectively. VGLL3, an adiposity regulator associated with size and age at maturity in humans, explained 39.4% of phenotypic variation, an unexpectedly high effect size for what is usually considered a highly polygenic trait. Such large effects are predicted under balancing selection from either sexually antagonistic or spatially varying selection. Our results provide the first empirical example of dominance reversal permitting greater optimisation of phenotypes within each sex, contributing to the resolution of sexual conflict in a major and widespread evolutionary trade-off between age and size at maturity. They also provide key empirical evidence for how variation in reproductive strategies can be maintained over large geographical scales. We further anticipate these findings will have a substantial impact on population management in a range of harvested species where trends towards earlier maturation have been observed

Reproductive behavior

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rachel Olzer ◽  
Rebecca L. Ehrlich ◽  
Justa L. Heinen-Kay ◽  
Jessie Tanner ◽  
Marlene Zuk
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Selection ◽  
Sexual Conflict ◽  
Female Choice ◽  
Reproductive Behavior ◽  
Mating Systems ◽  
Insect Behavior ◽  
Sequential Approach ◽  
Evolutionary Mechanisms ◽  
Anatomy And Physiology ◽  
Males And Females

Sex and reproduction lie at the heart of studies of insect behavior. We begin by providing a brief overview of insect anatomy and physiology, followed by an introduction to the overarching themes of parental investment, sexual selection, and mating systems. We then take a sequential approach to illustrate the diversity of phenomena and concepts behind insect reproductive behavior from pre-copulatory mate signalling through copulatory sperm transfer, mating positions, and sexual conflict, to post-copulatory sperm competition, and cryptic female choice. We provide an overview of the evolutionary mechanisms driving reproductive behavior. These events are linked by the economic defendability of mates or resources, and how these are allocated in each sex. Under the framework of economic defendability, the reader can better understand how sexual antagonistic behaviors arise as the result of competing optimal fitness strategies between males and females.

scholarly journals The cost of associating with males for Bornean and Sumatran female orangutans: a hidden form of sexual conflict?

2020 ◽  
Vol 75 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Julia A. Kunz ◽  
Guilhem J. Duvot ◽  
Maria A. van Noordwijk ◽  
Erik P. Willems ◽  
Manuela Townsend ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Conflict ◽  
Sexual Coercion ◽  
High Association ◽  
Sexual Swellings ◽  
Fecal Cortisol ◽  
Habitat Productivity ◽  
Pongo Pygmaeus Wurmbii ◽  
Males And Females ◽  
Study Sites ◽  
The Cost

Abstract Sexual coercion, in the form of forced copulations, is relatively frequently observed in orangutans and generally attributed to their semi-solitary lifestyle. High ecological costs of association for females may be responsible for this lifestyle and may have prevented the evolution of morphological fertility indicators (e.g., sexual swellings), which would attract (male) associates. Therefore, sexual conflict may arise not only about mating per se but also about associations, because males may benefit from associations with females to monitor their reproductive state and attempt to monopolize their sexual activities. Here, we evaluate association patterns and costs for females when associating with both males and females of two different orangutan species at two study sites: Suaq, Sumatra (Pongo abelii), and Tuanan, Borneo (Pongo pygmaeus wurmbii). Female association frequency with both males and females was higher in the Sumatran population, living in more productive habitat. Accordingly, we found that the cost of association, in terms of reduced feeding to moving ratio and increased time being active, is higher in the less sociable Bornean population. Males generally initiated and maintained such costly associations with females, and prolonged associations with males led to increased female fecal cortisol metabolite (FCM) levels at Tuanan, the Bornean population. We conclude that male-maintained associations are an expression of sexual conflict in orangutans, at least at Tuanan. For females, this cost of association may be responsible for the lack of sexual signaling, while needing to confuse paternity. Significance statement Socioecological theory predicts a trade-off between the benefits of sociality and the ecological costs of increased feeding competition. Orangutans’ semi-solitary lifestyle has been attributed to the combination of high association costs and low predation risk. Previous work revealed a positive correlation between association frequencies and habitat productivity, but did not measure the costs of association. In this comparative study, we show that females likely incur costs from involuntary, male-maintained associations, especially when they last for several days and particularly in the population characterized by lower association frequencies. Association maintenance therefore qualifies as another expression of sexual conflict in orangutans, and especially prolonged, male-maintained associations may qualify as an indirect form of sexual coercion.

Direct-write printing of reactive oligomeric alkoxysilanes as an affordable and highly efficient route for promoting local adhesion of silver inks on polymer substrates

2016 ◽  
Vol 4 (11) ◽  
pp. 2211-2218 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marina N. Kirikova ◽  
Elena V. Agina ◽  
Alexander A. Bessonov ◽  
Alexey S. Sizov ◽  
Oleg V. Borshchev ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Direct Write ◽  
Polymer Substrates ◽  
Highly Efficient ◽  
Novel Approach ◽  
Efficient Route ◽  
Polymeric Substrates

A novel approach for improving the printability and adhesion of silver inks on flexible and stretchable polymeric substrates is reported.

scholarly journals Enhancing (crop) plant photosynthesis by introducing novel genetic diversity

2017 ◽  
Vol 372 (1730) ◽  
pp. 20160380 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marcel Dann ◽  
Dario Leister
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Diversity ◽  
Genetic Manipulation ◽  
Plant Evolution ◽  
Crop Plants ◽  
Crop Plant ◽  
Higher Plant ◽  
Novel Approach ◽  
Population Sizes ◽  
Plant Photosynthesis ◽  
Successful Establishment

Although some elements of the photosynthetic light reactions might appear to be ideal, the overall efficiency of light conversion to biomass has not been optimized during evolution. Because crop plants are depleted of genetic diversity for photosynthesis, efforts to enhance its efficiency with respect to light conversion to yield must generate new variation. In principle, three sources of natural variation are available: (i) rare diversity within extant higher plant species, (ii) photosynthetic variants from algae, and (iii) reconstruction of no longer extant types of plant photosynthesis. Here, we argue for a novel approach that outsources crop photosynthesis to a cyanobacterium that is amenable to adaptive evolution. This system offers numerous advantages, including a short generation time, virtually unlimited population sizes and high mutation rates, together with a versatile toolbox for genetic manipulation. On such a synthetic bacterial platform, 10 000 years of (crop) plant evolution can be recapitulated within weeks. Limitations of this system arise from its unicellular nature, which cannot reproduce all aspects of crop photosynthesis. But successful establishment of such a bacterial host for crop photosynthesis promises not only to enhance the performance of eukaryotic photosynthesis but will also reveal novel facets of the molecular basis of photosynthetic flexibility. This article is part of the themed issue ‘Enhancing photosynthesis in crop plants: targets for improvement’.

scholarly journals Sex-dependent dominance maintains migration supergene in rainbow trout

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Devon E. Pearse ◽  
Nicola J. Barson ◽  
Torfinn Nome ◽  
Guangtu Gao ◽  
Matthew A. Campbell ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Rainbow Trout ◽  
Sex Chromosomes ◽  
Sexual Conflict ◽  
Genetic Basis ◽  
Deleterious Mutation ◽  
Deleterious Mutations ◽  
Heteromorphic Sex Chromosomes ◽  
Males And Females ◽  
Shared Genetic ◽  
Environmental Dependence

AbstractTraits with different fitness optima in males and females cause sexual conflict when they have a shared genetic basis. Heteromorphic sex chromosomes can resolve this conflict and protect sexually antagonistic polymorphisms but accumulate deleterious mutations. However, many taxa lack differentiated sex chromosomes, and how sexual conflict is resolved in these species is largely unknown. Here we present a chromosome-anchored genome assembly for rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) and characterize a 56 Mb double-inversion supergene that mediates sex-specific migration through sex-dependent dominance, a mechanism that reduces sexual conflict. The double-inversion contains key photosensory, circadian rhythm, adiposity, and sexual differentiation genes and displays frequency clines associated with latitude and temperature, revealing environmental dependence. Our results constitute the first example of sex-dependent dominance across a large autosomal supergene, a novel mechanism for sexual conflict resolution capable of protecting polygenic sexually antagonistic variation while avoiding the homozygous lethality and deleterious mutation load of heteromorphic sex chromosomes.

scholarly journals Blending coral restoration science and practice: A novel approach to Acropora population enhancement.

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jessica S Levy ◽  
Kayla J Ripple ◽  
Ken Nedimyer ◽  
Scott R Winters
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Diversity ◽  
Population Based ◽  
Acropora Cervicornis ◽  
Recovery Plan ◽  
Innovative Methods ◽  
Novel Approach ◽  
Restoration Techniques ◽  
Caribbean Coral Reefs ◽  
Reef Tract ◽  
Restoration Strategies

Florida and Caribbean coral reefs are in a state of unprecedented decline. Reefs once dominated by branching, hard-coral species, Acropora cervicornis and A. palmata, have lost upwards of 98% of Acroporid cover in recent decades. This decline is attributed to multiple, compounding factors. As these threats continue, there is a clear need for innovative methods to bolster remaining populations thus signaling to managers that intervention is needed to support recovery of the species. The urgency around coral decline has prompted practitioners to try a variety of restoration techniques. While promising, efforts need to incorporate best-practices of supporting genetic diversity, ecological function, and resiliency for successful coral restoration outcomes. Herein we present novel approaches to coral population enhancement (coral restoration) that blend science and practice. Guided by NOAA’s Acropora Recovery Plan, we have implemented an ambitious restoration plan to outplant 50,700 corals using both Acropora species across eight reefs along the Florida Reef Tract. The restoration strategies presented here are designed to meet several population-based recovery objectives and criteria identified in the Acropora Recovery Plan including: increasing abundance, promoting genetic diversity, promoting recruitment, and disease mitigation (as informed by monitoring).

scholarly journals GPA-MDS: A Visualization Approach to Investigate Genetic Architecture among Phenotypes Using GWAS Results

2016 ◽  
Vol 2016 ◽  
pp. 1-6 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wei Wei ◽  
Paula S. Ramos ◽  
Kelly J. Hunt ◽  
Bethany J. Wolf ◽  
Gary Hardiman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Complex Traits ◽  
Genetic Architecture ◽  
Association Studies ◽  
Genetic Relationships ◽  
Joint Analysis ◽  
Genome Wide Association Studies ◽  
Risk Variants ◽  
Novel Approach ◽  
Medical Benefits ◽  
Rigorous Framework

Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified tens of thousands of genetic variants associated with hundreds of phenotypes and diseases, which have provided clinical and medical benefits to patients with novel biomarkers and therapeutic targets. Recently, there has been accumulating evidence suggesting that different complex traits share a common risk basis, namely, pleiotropy. Previously, a statistical method, namely, GPA (Genetic analysis incorporating Pleiotropy and Annotation), was developed to improve identification of risk variants and to investigate pleiotropic structure through a joint analysis of multiple GWAS datasets. While GPA provides a statistically rigorous framework to evaluate pleiotropy between phenotypes, it is still not trivial to investigate genetic relationships among a large number of phenotypes using the GPA framework. In order to address this challenge, in this paper, we propose a novel approach, GPA-MDS, to visualize genetic relationships among phenotypes using the GPA algorithm and multidimensional scaling (MDS). This tool will help researchers to investigate common etiology among diseases, which can potentially lead to development of common treatments across diseases. We evaluate the proposed GPA-MDS framework using a simulation study and apply it to jointly analyze GWAS datasets examining 18 unique phenotypes, which helps reveal the shared genetic architecture of these phenotypes.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document