DRD4 gene polymorphism in great tits: gender-specific association with behavioural variation in the wild

Timm, Killu; Tilgar, Vallo; Saag, Pauli

doi:10.1007/s00265-015-1887-z

Cited by 12 publications

(20 citation statements)

References 44 publications

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“…Whether this finding is indeed the result of an intralocus sexual conflict needs to be further assessed. Nevertheless, our results clearly demonstrate the importance of investigating genotype-phenotype associations separately for males and females (Timm et al 2015).…”

Section: Association Between Snps or Indels And Behavioural Traitsmentioning

confidence: 66%

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Population differentiation and behavioural association of the two ‘personality’ genesDRD4andSERTin dunnocks (Prunella modularis)

et al. 2016

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Quantifying the variation in behaviour-related genes within and between populations provides insight into how evolutionary processes shape consistent behavioural traits (i.e. personality). Deliberate introductions of non-native species offer opportunities to investigate how such genes differ between native and introduced populations and how polymorphisms in the genes are related to variation in behaviour. Here, we compared the genetic variation of the two 'personality' genes, DRD4 and SERT, between a native (United Kingdom, UK) and an introduced (New Zealand, NZ) population of dunnocks, Prunella modularis. The NZ population showed a significantly lower number of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) compared to the UK population. Standardized F'st estimates of the personality genes and neutral microsatellites indicate that selection (anthropogenic and natural) probably occurred during and post the introduction event. Notably, the largest genetic differentiation was found in the intronic regions of the genes. In the NZ population, we also examined the association between polymorphisms in DRD4 and SERT and two highly repeatable behavioural traits: flight-initiation distance and mating status (promiscuous females and cobreeding males). We found 38 significant associations (for different allele effect models) between the two behavioural traits and the studied genes. Further, 22 of the tested associations showed antagonistic allele effects for males and females. Our findings illustrate how introduction events and accompanying ecological changes could influence the genetic diversity of behaviour-related genes.

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Section: Association Between Snps or Indels And Behavioural Traitsmentioning

confidence: 66%

“…Nevertheless, our results clearly demonstrate the importance of investigating genotype–phenotype associations separately for males and females (Timm et al . ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Population differentiation and behavioural association of the two ‘personality’ genesDRD4andSERTin dunnocks (Prunella modularis)

et al. 2016

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“…The response of adult birds to a novel object was tested when nestlings were 7-13 days old. A novel object (Eppendorf box) was placed on the rooftop of the nest box at the beginning of the experimental phase (see Timm et al, 2015 for details). The experimental phase was preceded by a control phase, where the normal feeding rate of birds was recorded for 15 min.…”

Section: Behavioural Measurementsmentioning

confidence: 99%

SERT gene polymorphisms are associated with risk-taking behaviour and breeding parameters in wild great tits

Timm

Oers

Tilgar

2018

Journal of Experimental Biology

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Individual differences in coping with potentially dangerous situations are affected by a combination of genetic and environmental factors. How genetic polymorphisms and behavioural variations are related to fitness is unknown. One of the candidate genes affecting a variety of behavioural processes, including impulsivity, anxiety and mood fluctuations in both humans and other vertebrates, is the serotonin transporter gene (/). The aim of this study was to assess an association between genotypes and novelty-seeking and risk-taking behaviours as well as breeding parameters of great tits () in a natural environment. We associated polymorphisms in the promoter exonic regions of the gene with parental risk-taking-related behaviour and fitness traits. Our results show that: (1) risk-taking behaviour in our great tit population is linked to single nucleotide polymorphisms in the gene exon 3 and exon 8; (2) the genotype-behaviour associations are consistent with the presence of different stressors; and (3) polymorphisms in exon 8 could be associated with fitness-related traits, such as the start of egg-laying and hatching success. We showed for the first time that genetic variability of plays an important role in shaping individual decision-making that affects fitness in a wild population. However, the results are based on one population and on the polymorphisms that are in a single gene. Therefore, replication studies are needed in order to confirm these preliminary results.

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“…For example, polymorphisms at the dopamine receptor D 4 gene (DRD4) are often associated with variation in diverse traits such as fear, novelty seeking and body mass (e.g. [ 25 – 27 ], but see: [ 28 , 29 ]). DRD4 is an important component of the dopaminergic system, coding for a subtype of dopamine receptor in vertebrates [ 30 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Variation at the DRD4 locus is associated with wariness and local site selection in urban black swans

et al. 2015

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BackgroundInteractions between wildlife and humans are increasing. Urban animals are often less wary of humans than their non-urban counterparts, which could be explained by habituation, adaptation or local site selection. Under local site selection, individuals that are less tolerant of humans are less likely to settle in urban areas. However, there is little evidence for such temperament-based site selection, and even less is known about its underlying genetic basis. We tested whether site selection in urban and non-urban habitats by black swans (Cygnus atratus) was associated with polymorphisms in two genes linked to fear in animals, the dopamine receptor D4 (DRD4) and serotonin transporter (SERT) genes.ResultsWariness in swans was highly repeatable between disturbance events (repeatability = 0.61) and non-urban swans initiated escape from humans earlier than urban swans. We found no inter-individual variation in the SERT gene, but identified five DRD4 genotypes and an association between DRD4 genotype and wariness. Individuals possessing the most common DRD4 genotype were less wary than individuals possessing rarer genotypes. As predicted by the local site selection hypothesis, genotypes associated with wary behaviour were over three times more frequent at the non-urban site. This resulted in moderate population differentiation at DRD4 (FST = 0.080), despite the sites being separated by only 30 km, a short distance for this highly-mobile species. Low population differentiation at neutrally-selected microsatellite loci and the likely occasional migration of swans between the populations reduces the likelihood of local site adaptations.ConclusionOur results suggest that wariness in swans is partly genetically-determined and that wary swans settle in less-disturbed areas. More generally, our findings suggest that site-specific management strategies may be necessary that consider the temperament of local animals.

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DRD4 gene polymorphism in great tits: gender-specific association with behavioural variation in the wild

Cited by 12 publications

References 44 publications

Population differentiation and behavioural association of the two ‘personality’ genesDRD4andSERTin dunnocks (Prunella modularis)

Population differentiation and behavioural association of the two ‘personality’ genesDRD4andSERTin dunnocks (Prunella modularis)

SERT gene polymorphisms are associated with risk-taking behaviour and breeding parameters in wild great tits

Variation at the DRD4 locus is associated with wariness and local site selection in urban black swans

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