Female × Male Interactions in
            <i>Drosophila</i>
            Sperm Competition

Clark, Andrew G.; Begun, David J.; Prout, Timothy

doi:10.1126/science.283.5399.217

Cited by 333 publications

(385 citation statements)

References 24 publications

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“…First, we show that there are measurable fitness benefits associated with these chemically moderated gamete preferences; sperm preferentially swim towards eggs that not only deliver higher fertilization rewards (this study and [22]) but also those that yield higher post-zygotic survival rates. In other contexts, previous studies have reported significant male-by-female interactions at fertilization [33,34], but the question of whether 'compatible' combinations of sperm and eggs yield high post-zygotic survival has received less attention, and some studies investigating this topic in other contexts have reported no significant association between fertilization and offspring viability [23 -25]. Our study provides evidence that in M. galloprovincialis, the fertilization benefits of sperm chemoattraction extend 'upstream' to include enhanced offspring viability.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Chemically moderated gamete preferences predict offspring fitness in a broadcast spawning invertebrate

2014

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Sperm chemoattraction, where sperm locate unfertilized eggs by following a concentration gradient of egg-derived chemoattractants, has been widely documented across numerous taxa. While marine invertebrates are favoured models for understanding the underlying mechanisms of sperm chemoattraction, the evolutionary forces underpinning the process remain enigmatic. Here, we show that in mussels (Mytilus galloprovincialis), chemically moderated gamete preferences promote assortative fertilizations between genetically compatible gametes. When offered the choice of egg clutches from two females, sperm exhibited consistent but differential 'preferences' for chemical cues secreted from conspecific eggs. Critically, our data reveal that the preferences shown by sperm during the egg-choice trials are highly predictive of early embryonic viability when eggs and sperm from the same individuals are mixed during standard (no-choice) fertilization assays. Moreover, we demonstrate that by experimentally separating chemoattractants from eggs, sperm swimming behaviour is differentially regulated by eggderived chemoattractants, and that these changes in sperm behaviour are highly consistent with observed patterns of gamete preferences, fertilization and larval survival. Together, this integrated series of experiments reveals that the behaviour of sperm is fine-tuned to respond differentially to the chemical signals emitted from different conspecific eggs, and that these choices have measurable fitness benefits.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Chemically moderated gamete preferences predict offspring fitness in a broadcast spawning invertebrate

2014

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“…Whether or not the sperm competitive superiority of the B2 haplogroup is intrinsic or dependent on female haplogroup remains to be determined, since only A-haplogroup females were used in this experiment. Given the evidence of male and female genotype effects on sperm competition in other species [44,45], it is possible that sperm competitive ability in C. scorpioides may be influenced by female mitochondrial haplogroup. While haplogroup-dependent cryptic female choice favouring B2 sperm could theoretically account for the B2 male advantage in fertilization, this hypothesis is not consistent with the results of our assessment of possible haplotype effects on female reproductive function.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sisters' curse: sexually antagonistic effects constrain the spread of a mitochondrial haplogroup superior in sperm competition

et al. 2014

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Maternal inheritance of mitochondria creates a sex-specific selective sieve with implications for male longevity, disease susceptibility and infertility. Because males are an evolutionary dead end for mitochondria, mitochondrial mutations that are harmful or beneficial to males but not females cannot respond directly to selection. Although the importance of this male/female asymmetry in evolutionary response depends on the extent to which mitochondrial mutations exert antagonistic effects on male and female fitness, few studies have documented sex-specific selection acting on mitochondria. Here, we exploited the discovery of two highly divergent mitochondrial haplogroups (A and B2) in central Panamanian populations of the pseudoscorpion Cordylochernes scorpioides. Next-generation sequencing and phylogenetic analyses suggest that selection on the ND4 and ND4L mitochondrial genes may partially explain sexually antagonistic mitochondrial effects on reproduction. Males carrying the rare B2 mitochondrial haplogroup enjoy a marked advantage in sperm competition, but B2 females are significantly less sexually receptive at second mating than A females. This reduced propensity for polyandry is likely to significantly reduce female lifetime reproductive success, thereby limiting the spread of the male beneficial B2 haplogroup. Our findings suggest that maternal inheritance of mitochondria and sexually antagonistic selection can constrain male adaptation and sexual selection in nature.

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“…Accompanying the evidence for sexual selection on ejaculates is corresponding evidence that selection can favour female reproductive traits that serve to bias fertilizations towards either 'preferred' [5] or genetically compatible mates [6][7][8]. Sperm competition can therefore be underpinned by effects attributable to both sexes, including relative differences in the sperm competitive ability of rival males [9][10][11], consistent biases in fertilization rates that are mediated by female effects [12], and complex interactions involving the genotypes of competing males and females [13][14][15]. Consequently, disentangling these processes, and in particular the relative importance of males, females and their interacting effects in sperm competition, poses a significant empirical challenge [16,17].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Delineating the roles of males and females in sperm competition

et al. 2013

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Disentangling the relative roles of males, females and their interactive effects on competitive fertilization success remains a challenge in sperm competition. In this study, we apply a novel experimental framework to an ideally suited externally fertilizing model system in order to delineate these roles. We focus on the chinook salmon, Oncorhynchus tshawytscha, a species in which ovarian fluid (OF) has been implicated as a potential arbiter of cryptic female choice for genetically compatible mates. We evaluated this predicted sexually selected function of OF using a series of factorial competitive fertilization trials. Our design involved a series of 10 factorial crosses, each involving two 'focal' rival males whose sperm competed against those from a single 'standardized' (non-focal) rival for a genetically uniform set of eggs in the presence of OF from two focal females. This design enabled us to attribute variation in competitive fertilization success among focal males, females (OF) and their interacting effects, while controlling for variation attributable to differences in the sperm competitive ability of rival males, and male-by-female genotypic interactions. Using this experimental framework, we found that variation in sperm competitiveness could be attributed exclusively to differences in the sperm competitive ability of focal males, a conclusion supported by subsequent analyses revealing that variation in sperm swimming velocity predicts paternity success. Together, these findings provide evidence that variation in paternity success can be attributed to intrinsic differences in the sperm competitive ability of rival males, and reveal that sperm swimming velocity is a key target of sexual selection.

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Female × Male Interactions in Drosophila Sperm Competition

Cited by 333 publications

References 24 publications

Chemically moderated gamete preferences predict offspring fitness in a broadcast spawning invertebrate

Chemically moderated gamete preferences predict offspring fitness in a broadcast spawning invertebrate

Sisters' curse: sexually antagonistic effects constrain the spread of a mitochondrial haplogroup superior in sperm competition

Delineating the roles of males and females in sperm competition

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