Genetic Basis and Selection for Life-History Trait Plasticity on Alternative Host Plants for the Cereal Aphid Sitobion avenae

Understanding the genetic basis of traits involved in adaptation is a major challenge in evolutionary biology but remains poorly understood. Here, we use genome-wide association mapping using a custom 50 k single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) array in a natural population of collared flycatchers to examine the genetic basis of clutch size, an important life-history trait in many animal species. We found evidence for an association on chromosome 18 where one SNP significant at the genome-wide level explained 3.9% of the phenotypic variance. We also detected two suggestive quantitative trait loci (QTLs) on chromosomes 9 and 26. Fitness differences among genotypes were generally weak and not significant, although there was some indication of a sex-by-genotype interaction for lifetime reproductive success at the suggestive QTL on chromosome 26. This implies that sexual antagonism may play a role in maintaining genetic variation at this QTL. Our findings provide candidate regions for a classic avian life-history trait that will be useful for future studies examining the molecular and cellular function of, as well as evolutionary mechanisms operating at, these loci.

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Genetic basis of offspring number and body weight variation in Drosophila melanogaster

10.1101/2020.07.14.203406 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Jamilla Akhund-Zade ◽

Shraddha Lall ◽

Erika Gajda ◽

Denise Yoon ◽

Benjamin de Bivort

Keyword(s):

Drosophila Melanogaster ◽

Life History ◽

Egg Production ◽

Genetic Basis ◽

Resource Constraints ◽

Adult Stage ◽

Life History Trait ◽

Functional Roles ◽

Offspring Number ◽

Weight Variation

AbstractDrosophila melanogaster egg production, a proxy for fecundity, is an extensively studied life-history trait with a strong genetic basis. As eggs develop into larvae and adults, space and resource constraints can put pressure on the developing offspring, leading to a decrease in viability, body size, and lifespan. Our goal was to map the genetic basis of offspring number and weight under the restriction of a standard laboratory vial. We screened 143 lines from the Drosophila Genetic Reference Panel for offspring numbers and weights to create an ‘offspring index’ that captured the number vs. weight trade-off. We found 30 associated variants in 18 genes. Validation of hid, Sox21b, CG8312, and mub candidate genes using gene disruption mutants demonstrated a role in adult stage viability, while mutations in Ih and Rbp increased offspring number and increased weight, respectively. The polygenic basis of offspring number and weight, with many variants of small effect, as well as the involvement of genes with varied functional roles, support the notion of Fisher’s “infinitesimal model” for this life-history trait.

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Comparison of the winter development, reproduction and lifespan of viviparae of Sitobion avenae (F.) and Rhopalosiphum padi (L.) (Hemiptera: Aphididae) on wheat and perennial rye grass in England

Bulletin of Entomological Research ◽

10.1017/s0007485300011500 ◽

1987 ◽

Vol 77 (1) ◽

pp. 35-43 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

C. T. Williams

Keyword(s):

Host Plants ◽

Rhopalosiphum Padi ◽

Reproductive Rate ◽

Aphid Species ◽

Sitobion Avenae ◽

Growth Stages ◽

Cereal Aphid ◽

Species Survival ◽

Total Fecundity ◽

Comparison Of The Results

AbstractThe mid-winter development, reproduction and survival of field-acclimatized viviparae of Sitobion avenae (F.) and Rhopalosiphum padi (L.) on leaves of tillering wheat and perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne) plants at similar growth stages were compared by monitoring batches of aphids in clip-cages in field plots in southern England. For both aphid species, survival, total fecundity and reproductive rate were much higher on wheat than on L. perenne, and on both host-plants they were much higher for S. avenae than for R. padi. Development times (in day-degrees) were longer on L. perenne than on wheat, and on both host-plants were longer for R. padi than for S. avenae, though these differences were less marked. Comparison of the results with those of earlier studies suggests that large changes in cereal aphid performance occur between summer and winter and that these are both aphid-specific and host-plant-specific.

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Genetic basis of offspring number-body weight tradeoff in Drosophila melanogaster

G3 Genes|Genome|Genetics ◽

10.1093/g3journal/jkab129 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Jamilla Akhund-Zade ◽

Shraddha Lall ◽

Erika Gajda ◽

Denise Yoon ◽

Julien F Ayroles ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Drosophila Melanogaster ◽

Life History ◽

Egg Production ◽

Genetic Basis ◽

Resource Constraints ◽

Adult Stage ◽

Life History Trait ◽

Functional Roles ◽

Offspring Number ◽

Drosophila Genetic Reference Panel

Abstract Drosophila melanogaster egg production, a proxy for fecundity, is an extensively studied life-history trait with a strong genetic basis. As eggs develop into larvae and adults, space and resource constraints can put pressure on the developing offspring, leading to a decrease in viability, body size, and lifespan. Our goal was to map the genetic basis of offspring number and weight under the restriction of a standard laboratory vial. We screened 143 lines from the Drosophila Genetic Reference Panel for offspring numbers and weights to create an ‘offspring index’ that captured the number vs. weight trade-off. We found 18 genes containing 30 variants associated with variation in the offspring index. Validation of hid, Sox21b, CG8312, and mub candidate genes using gene disruption mutants demonstrated a role in adult stage viability, while mutations in Ih and Rbp increased offspring number and increased weight, respectively. The polygenic basis of offspring number and weight, with many variants of small effect, as well as the involvement of genes with varied functional roles, support the notion of Fisher’s “infinitesimal model” for this life-history trait.

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Wolbachia both aids and hampers the performance of spider mites on different host plants

10.1101/344143 ◽

2018 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Flore Zélé ◽

Joaquim L. Santos ◽

Diogo Prino Godinho ◽

Sara Magalhães

Keyword(s):

Life History ◽

Host Range ◽

Host Plants ◽

Life History Traits ◽

Natural Populations ◽

Life History Trait ◽

Hatching Rate ◽

Egg Hatching ◽

Bacterial Endosymbionts ◽

Biased Sex Ratio

AbstractIn the last decades, many studies had revealed the potential role of arthropod bacterial endosymbionts in shaping the host range of generalist herbivores and their performance on different host plants, which, in turn, might affect endosymbiont distribution in herbivores populations. We tested this by measuring the prevalence of endosymbionts in natural populations of the generalist spider mite Tetranychus urticae on different host plants. Focusing on Wolbachia, we then analysed how symbionts affected mite life-history traits on the same host-plants in the laboratory. Overall, the prevalences of Cardinium and Rickettsia were low, whereas that of Wolbachia was high, with the highest values on bean and eggplant and the lowest on purple, tomato and zuchini. Although most mite life-history traits were affected by the plant species only, Wolbachia infection was detrimental for egg hatching rate on purple and zucchini, and led to a more female-biased sex ratio on purple and eggplant. These results suggest that endosymbionts may affect the host range of polyphagous herbivores, both by aiding and hampering their performance, depending on the host plant and on the life-history trait that affects performance the most. Conversely, endosymbiont spread may be facilitated or hindered by the plants on which infected herbivores occur.

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Implication of five host plants on the life history trait of Tetranychus urticae (Acari: Tetranychidae)

Biologia ◽

10.2478/s11756-020-00547-2 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Subhasree Mitra ◽

Shelley Acharya ◽

Sujay Ghosh

Keyword(s):

Life History ◽

Tetranychus Urticae ◽

Host Plants ◽

Life History Trait

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Heterogeneous genetic basis of age at maturity in salmonid fishes

10.1101/2020.07.24.220111 ◽

2020 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Charles D. Waters ◽

Anthony Clemento ◽

Tutku Aykanat ◽

John Carlos Garza ◽

Kerry A. Naish ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Life History ◽

Atlantic Salmon ◽

Sockeye Salmon ◽

Genetic Basis ◽

Coho Salmon ◽

Strong Association ◽

Life History Trait ◽

Age At Maturity ◽

A Genome ◽

Conservation And Management

AbstractUnderstanding the genetic basis of repeated evolution of the same phenotype across taxa is a fundamental aim in evolutionary biology and has applications to conservation and management. However, the extent to which interspecific life-history trait polymorphisms share evolutionary pathways remains under-explored. We address this gap by studying the genetic basis of a key life-history trait, age at maturity, in four species of Pacific salmon (genus Oncorhynchus) that exhibit intra- and interspecific variation in this trait – Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, Sockeye Salmon, and Steelhead Trout. We tested for associations in all four species between age at maturity and two genome regions, six6 and vgll3, that are strongly associated with the same trait in Atlantic Salmon (Salmo salar). We also conducted a genome-wide association analysis in Steelhead to assess whether additional regions were associated with this trait. We found the genetic basis of age at maturity to be heterogeneous across salmonid species. Significant associations between six6 and age at maturity were observed in two of the four species, Sockeye and Steelhead, with the association in Steelhead being particularly strong in both sexes (p = 4.46×10−9 after adjusting for genomic inflation). However, no significant associations were detected between age at maturity and the vgll3 genome region in any of the species, despite its strong association with the same trait in Atlantic Salmon. We discuss possible explanations for the heterogeneous nature of the genetic architecture of this key life-history trait, as well as the implications of our findings for conservation and management.

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