scholarly journals Preregistered Report: The Effects of Marking Methodology on Mate Choice in Drosophila melanogaster

2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 492-504
Author(s):  
Eirlys E. Tysall ◽  
Matilda Q. R. Pembury Smith ◽  
R. Tucker Gilman
Keyword(s):  
Drosophila Melanogaster ◽  
Sexual Selection ◽  
Mate Choice ◽  
Mating Behavior ◽  
Choice Experiments ◽  
Time Of Day ◽  
Model System ◽  
Drosophila Species ◽  
Fluorescent Powder ◽  
Key Driver

Mate choice is an important source of sexual selection and a key driver of evolutionary processes including adaptation and speciation. Drosophila species have become an important model system for studying mate choice in the lab. Mate choice experiments often require the marking of individual flies to make those flies identifiable to experimenters, and several marking methods have been developed. All of these methods have the potential to affect mating behavior, but the effects of different marking methods have not been systematically quantified and compared. In this experiment, we quantified and compared the effects of five marking methods commonly used for Drosophila melanogaster: wing clipping, applying paint to the thorax, applying marker pen to the wing, dusting flies with fluorescent powder, and dyeing flies by allowing them to ingest food coloring. Females mated with unmarked males more often than they mated with marked males, but we could not detect significant differences among marking methods. Latency to mate differed among marking methods, and also with the time of day and the time within the trial. We discuss how our results can help researchers plan studies that require the marking of Drosophila.

scholarly journals Differences in Long-Chained Cuticular Hydrocarbons between Males and Gynes in Cataglyphis Desert Ants

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shani Inbar ◽  
Eyal Privman
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Selection ◽  
Mate Choice ◽  
Sex Ratio ◽  
Mating Behavior ◽  
Cuticular Hydrocarbons ◽  
Social Insects ◽  
Sex Pheromones ◽  
Polar Fraction ◽  
Virgin Queens ◽  
First Time

AbstractCuticualar hydrocarbons play an important role in chemical communication in social insects, serving, among other things, as nestmate, gender, dominance and fertility recognition cues. In ants, however, very little is known about the precopulatory signals cuticular hydrocarbons carry. These signals may serve as affecting sex pheromones and aphrodisiacs or as reliable signals for idiosyncratic traits, which indirectly affect sexual selection. In this study, we examined, for the first time, in the Cataglyphis genus, sex-specific variability in cuticular hydrocarbons. We focused on a species that exhibits split sex-ratio and found significant quantitative differences between virgin queens and their potential mates. In an analyses of both absolute amounts and relative amounts, we found different compounds to be significantly displayed on gynes and drones, suggesting absolute and relative amounts may carry different signals influencing mating behavior and mate choice. We discuss the possible signals advertised by the non-polar fraction of these hydrocarbon profiles.

Redundant and cryptic enhancer activities of the Drosophila yellow gene

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gizem Kalay ◽  
Jennifer Lachowiec ◽  
Ulises Rosas ◽  
Mackenzie R. Dome ◽  
Patricia Wittkopp
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Drosophila Melanogaster ◽  
Dna Sequences ◽  
Model System ◽  
Drosophila Species ◽  
Drosophila Pseudoobscura ◽  
Regulatory Sequences ◽  
Phenotypic Evolution ◽  
Evolutionary Changes ◽  
And Function

Abstractcis-regulatory sequences known as enhancers play a key role in regulating gene expression. Evolutionary changes in these DNA sequences contribute to phenotypic evolution. The Drosophila yellow gene, which is required for pigmentation, has emerged as a model system for understanding how cis-regulatory sequences evolve, providing some of the most detailed insights available into how activities of orthologous enhancers have diverged between species. Here, we examine the evolution of yellow cis-regulatory sequences on a broader scale by comparing the distribution and function of yellow enhancer activities throughout the 5’ intergenic and intronic sequences of Drosophila melanogaster, Drosophila pseudoobscura, and Drosophila willistoni. We find that cis-regulatory sequences driving expression in a particular tissue are not as modular as previously described, but rather have many redundant and cryptic enhancer activities distributed throughout the regions surveyed. Interestingly, cryptic enhancer activities of sequences from one species often drove patterns of expression observed in other species, suggesting that the frequent evolutionary changes in yellow expression observed among Drosophila species may be facilitated by gaining and losing repression of pre-existing cis-regulatory sequences.

scholarly journals Assessing sexual conflict in the Drosophila melanogaster laboratory model system

2006 ◽  
Vol 361 (1466) ◽  
pp. 287-299 ◽  
Author(s):  
William R Rice ◽  
Andrew D Stewart ◽  
Edward H Morrow ◽  
Jodell E Linder ◽  
Nicole Orteiza ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Drosophila Melanogaster ◽  
Sexual Selection ◽  
Sexual Conflict ◽  
Graphical Model ◽  
Direct Costs ◽  
Model System ◽  
Laboratory Model ◽  
Laboratory Populations ◽  
Spatial Refuge ◽  
Sexually Antagonistic Coevolution

We describe a graphical model of interlocus coevolution used to distinguish between the interlocus sexual conflict that leads to sexually antagonistic coevolution, and the intrinsic conflict over mating rate that is an integral part of traditional models of sexual selection. We next distinguish the ‘laboratory island’ approach from the study of both inbred lines and laboratory populations that are newly derived from nature, discuss why we consider it to be one of the most fitting forms of laboratory analysis to study interlocus sexual conflict, and then describe four experiments using this approach with Drosophila melanogaster . The first experiment evaluates the efficacy of the laboratory model system to study interlocus sexual conflict by comparing remating rates of females when they are, or are not, provided with a spatial refuge from persistent male courtship. The second experiment tests for a lag-load in males that is due to adaptations that have accumulated in females, which diminish male-induced harm while simultaneously interfering with a male's ability to compete in the context of sexual selection. The third and fourth experiments test for a lag-load in females owing to direct costs from their interactions with males, and for the capacity for indirect benefits to compensate for these direct costs.

Mating success and wing morphometry in Drosophila melanogaster after long-term rearing on different diets

Behaviour ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 150 (12) ◽  
pp. 1431-1448 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jelena Trajković ◽  
Sofija Pavković-Lučić ◽  
Tatjana Savić
Keyword(s):  
Drosophila Melanogaster ◽  
Sexual Selection ◽  
Environmental Factors ◽  
Mate Choice ◽  
Mating Success ◽  
Phenotypic Variation ◽  
Wing Size ◽  
Males And Females ◽  
Ethological Isolation

Different environmental factors are important for development, physiology, behaviour and, therefore, adaptation of Drosophila species. Additionally, the presence of genetic and phenotypic variation in traits affecting mate choice forms the basis for sexual selection that may lead to isolation between populations in different nutritive environments. The aim of this research was to determine mating success and wing morphometry of Drosophila melanogaster flies after more than a decade of growing on banana and carrot substrates. Males and females reared on carrot medium were more successful in mating than flies reared on banana diet. Females originating from banana medium rather chose males originating from carrot substrate, while females developed on carrot medium equally chose males developed on both substrates. Differences in wing size and shape were observed between sexes and nutritional strains. Furthermore, the results showed absence of ethological isolation between two ‘nutritional’ strains.

scholarly journals Inference of sexual selection from pairwise contests

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Yu ◽  
Andrew G. Clark
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Selection ◽  
Mate Choice ◽  
Mathematical Models ◽  
Female Choice ◽  
Choice Experiments ◽  
Male Competition ◽  
Male Choice ◽  
Leave One Out

AbstractSexual selection, whether mediated by male-male competition, female choice, or male choice, is often realized through a series of pairwise contests. Experimental evolutionists have long applied male-choice and female-choice experiments to quantify the relative mating abilities of genotypes, an important component of fitness. Here, we consider Drosophila mate-choice experiments and apply two mathematical models, the Bradley-Terry and the Élő models, which have been explicitly designed to quantify the merits of contestants and establish a ranking based on results from pairwise contests. Methods such as the Bradley-Terry model and Élő ratings also provide a way to predict the outcome of contests that have not yet taken place. Leave-one-out validation approaches allow us to assess the utility of these models to quantify relative fitnesses, how well the models fit the data, and how well they perform at prediction. After applying these methods to Drosophila mate-choice experiments, we interpret the results in terms of sexual selection, and discuss the implications of departures of the data from good fits to the models.

The flexible fly: experience-dependent development of complex behaviors in Drosophila melanogaster.

1994 ◽  
Vol 195 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-18 ◽  
Author(s):  
H V Hirsch ◽  
L Tompkins
Keyword(s):  
Drosophila Melanogaster ◽  
Mate Choice ◽  
Developmental Plasticity ◽  
Early Experience ◽  
Behavioral Development ◽  
Model System ◽  
Dependent Development ◽  
Developmental Mechanisms ◽  
The Many ◽  
Practical Implications

We demonstrate that Drosophila melanogaster provides a rich model system for studying behavioral development. Two additions to the many well-known advantages of this species are exploited here. First, as in mammals and higher vertebrates, early experience affects behavioral development of Drosophila. Second, the affected behaviors are complex and yet readily studied in the laboratory. Thus, Drosophila can be used to study the developmental mechanisms by which organisms can optimize their behavioral repertoires to enhance their chances for survival. Evidence that early experience affects female responsiveness to courting males is reviewed; in each case, experience modifies responses to behavioral targets. Our results demonstrate that developmental plasticity allows adjustment of intrinsically determined responses to visual targets so that they can take into account the actual characteristics of the developing animal's environment. Furthermore, plasticity makes it possible to introduce 'cultural' and 'social' elements into courtship and mate choice in insects. This previously unrecognized role for developmental plasticity in insects has broad theoretical and practical implications.

Drosophila melanogaster – a suitable model system to study epithelial immune responses in-vivo

Pneumologie ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 69 (04) ◽  
Author(s):  
C Wagner ◽  
H Fehrenbach
Keyword(s):  
Drosophila Melanogaster ◽  
Immune Responses ◽  
Model System ◽  
Suitable Model

scholarly journals Genotype and Trait Specific Responses to Rapamycin Intake in Drosophila melanogaster

Insects ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 474
Author(s):  
Palle Duun Rohde ◽  
Asbjørn Bøcker ◽  
Caroline Amalie Bastholm Jensen ◽  
Anne Louise Bergstrøm ◽  
Morten Ib Juul Madsen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Drosophila Melanogaster ◽  
Heat Stress ◽  
Side Effects ◽  
Protein Kinase ◽  
Stress Tolerance ◽  
Treated Group ◽  
Model System ◽  
Treatment Efficiency ◽  
Evolutionarily Conserved ◽  
Heat Stress Tolerance

Rapamycin is a powerful inhibitor of the TOR (Target of Rapamycin) pathway, which is an evolutionarily conserved protein kinase, that plays a central role in plants and animals. Rapamycin is used globally as an immunosuppressant and as an anti-aging medicine. Despite widespread use, treatment efficiency varies considerably across patients, and little is known about potential side effects. Here we seek to investigate the effects of rapamycin by using Drosophila melanogaster as model system. Six isogenic D. melanogaster lines were assessed for their fecundity, male longevity and male heat stress tolerance with or without rapamycin treatment. The results showed increased longevity and heat stress tolerance for male flies treated with rapamycin. Conversely, the fecundity of rapamycin-exposed individuals was lower than for flies from the non-treated group, suggesting unwanted side effects of the drug in D. melanogaster. We found strong evidence for genotype-by-treatment interactions suggesting that a ‘one size fits all’ approach when it comes to treatment with rapamycin is not recommendable. The beneficial responses to rapamycin exposure for stress tolerance and longevity are in agreement with previous findings, however, the unexpected effects on reproduction are worrying and need further investigation and question common believes that rapamycin constitutes a harmless drug.

scholarly journals Comparative approaches to the study of physiology: Drosophila as a physiological tool

2013 ◽  
Vol 304 (3) ◽  
pp. R177-R188 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wendi S. Neckameyer ◽  
Kathryn J. Argue
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Drosophila Melanogaster ◽  
Pattern Formation ◽  
Signaling Pathways ◽  
Human Disease ◽  
Cognitive Disorders ◽  
Model System ◽  
Critical Questions ◽  
Developmental Signaling ◽  
Shed Light

Numerous studies have detailed the extensive conservation of developmental signaling pathways between the model system, Drosophila melanogaster, and mammalian models, but researchers have also profited from the unique and highly tractable genetic tools available in this system to address critical questions in physiology. In this review, we have described contributions that Drosophila researchers have made to mathematical dynamics of pattern formation, cardiac pathologies, the way in which pain circuits are integrated to elicit responses from sensation, as well as the ways in which gene expression can modulate diverse behaviors and shed light on human cognitive disorders. The broad and diverse array of contributions from Drosophila underscore its translational relevance to modeling human disease.

scholarly journals Gamete-mediated mate choice: towards a more inclusive view of sexual selection

2018 ◽  
Vol 285 (1883) ◽  
pp. 20180836 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jukka Kekäläinen ◽  
Jonathan P. Evans
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Selection ◽  
Mate Choice ◽  
Sperm Competition ◽  
Female Choice ◽  
Mating Systems ◽  
Molecular Level ◽  
Evolutionary Significance ◽  
Random Interactions ◽  
Physiological Processes ◽  
The Everyday

‘Sperm competition’—where ejaculates from two or more males compete for fertilization—and ‘cryptic female choice’—where females bias this contest to suit their reproductive interests—are now part of the everyday lexicon of sexual selection. Yet the physiological processes that underlie these post-ejaculatory episodes of sexual selection remain largely enigmatic. In this review, we focus on a range of post-ejaculatory cellular- and molecular-level processes, known to be fundamental for fertilization across most (if not all) sexually reproducing species, and point to their putative role in facilitating sexual selection at the level of the cells and gametes, called ‘gamete-mediated mate choice’ (GMMC). In this way, we collate accumulated evidence for GMMC across different mating systems, and emphasize the evolutionary significance of such non-random interactions among gametes. Our overall aim in this review is to build a more inclusive view of sexual selection by showing that mate choice often acts in more nuanced ways than has traditionally been assumed. We also aim to bridge the conceptual divide between proximal mechanisms of reproduction, and adaptive explanations for patterns of non-random sperm–egg interactions that are emerging across an increasingly diverse array of taxa.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document