A comparison of nuclear and cytoplasmic genetic effects on sperm competitiveness and female remating in a seed beetle

It is widely assumed that male sperm competitiveness evolves adaptively. However, recent studies have found a cytoplasmic genetic component to phenotypic variation in some sperm traits presumed important in sperm competition. As cytoplasmic genes are maternally transmitted, they cannot respond to se...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of evolutionary biology 2007-11, Vol.20 (6), p.2113-2125
Main Authors: DOWLING, D. K., FRIBERG, U., ARNQVIST, G.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adaptation
adaptive evolution
Animal reproduction
Animals
Biologi
Biology
Callosobruchus maculatus
Cell Nucleus - genetics
Coleoptera - genetics
Coleoptera - physiology
Crosses, Genetic
Cytoplasm - genetics
Evolutionary biology
Female
Genotype & phenotype
Insects
Male
mitochondria
mtDNA
NATURAL SCIENCES
NATURVETENSKAP
seed beetles
sexual selection
sperm competition
Spermatozoa - metabolism
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Summary:It is widely assumed that male sperm competitiveness evolves adaptively. However, recent studies have found a cytoplasmic genetic component to phenotypic variation in some sperm traits presumed important in sperm competition. As cytoplasmic genes are maternally transmitted, they cannot respond to selection on sperm and this constraint may affect the scope in which sperm competitiveness can evolve adaptively. We examined nuclear and cytoplasmic genetic contributions to sperm competitiveness, using populations of Callosobruchus maculatus carrying orthogonal combinations of nuclear and cytoplasmic lineages. Our design also enabled us to examine genetic contributions to female remating. We found that sperm competitiveness and remating are primarily encoded by nuclear genes. In particular, a male’s sperm competitiveness phenotype was contingent on an interaction between the competing male genotypes. Furthermore, cytoplasmic effects were detected on remating but not sperm competitiveness, suggesting that cytoplasmic genes do not generally play a profound evolutionary role in sperm competition.
ISSN:1010-061X
1420-9101
1420-9101
DOI:10.1111/j.1420-9101.2007.01433.x