<i>Mhc</i>polymorphisms fail to explain the heritability of phytohaemagglutinin-induced skin swelling in a wild passerine

Bonneaud, Camille; Sinsheimer, Janet S.; Richard, Murielle; Chastel, Olivier; Sorci, Gabriele

doi:10.1098/rsbl.2009.0435

Cited by 20 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 27 publications

(34 reference statements)

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“…However, in this study PHA‐response was unrelated to MHC class II heterozygosity or to the presence of certain alleles in the genome of lesser kestrel nestlings. Although our results should be considered with caution due to sample size constraints, they are in agreement with Bonneaud et al (), who found PHA heritability to be independent from MHC variation. The lack of association between PHA‐response and MHC II variability could stem from the time frame considered, as MHC genotypes had been significantly associated with PHA in chicken, but only after 72 hr post‐injection (Taylor et al, ).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 93%

Determinants and short‐term physiological consequences of PHA immune response in lesser kestrel nestlings

et al. 2014

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Individual immune responses are likely affected by genetic, physiological, and environmental determinants. We studied the determinants and short-term consequences of Phytohaemagglutinin (PHA) induced immune response, a commonly used immune challenge eliciting both innate and acquired immunity, on lesser kestrel (Falco naumanni) nestlings in semi-captivity conditions and with a homogeneous diet composition. We conducted a repeated measures analyses of a set of blood parameters (carotenoids, triglycerides, β-hydroxybutyrate, cholesterol, uric acid, urea, total proteins, and total antioxidant capacity), metabolic (resting metabolic rate), genotypic (MHC class II B heterozygosity), and biometric (body mass) variables. PHA challenge did not affect the studied physiological parameters on a short-term basis (<12 hr), except plasma concentrations of triglycerides and carotenoids, which decreased and increased, respectively. Uric acid was the only physiological parameter correlated with the PHA induced immune response (skin swelling), but the change of body mass, cholesterol, total antioxidant capacity, and triglycerides between sessions (i.e., post-pre treatment) were also positively correlated to PHA response. No relationships were detected between MHC gene heterozygosity or resting metabolic rate and PHA response. Our results indicate that PHA response in lesser kestrel nestlings growing in optimal conditions does not imply a severe energetic cost 12 hr after challenge, but is condition-dependent as a rapid mobilization of carotenoids and decrease of triglycerides is elicited on a short-term basis.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 93%

Determinants and short‐term physiological consequences of PHA immune response in lesser kestrel nestlings

et al. 2014

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“…The quantitative genetics analysis also provided evidence of strong additive genetic effects for body mass (adults and fledglings, h 2 ranging from 0.53 to 0.89) and PHA-mediated immune response (fledglings, h 2 ¼ 0.47-0.55). Particularly, the heritability of response to PHA of avian young was surprisingly high compared with other bird populations estimated using either animal model approach or full-sibling analysis (Ardia and Rice, 2006;Pitala et al, 2007; but see Bonneaud et al, 2009). These heritable traits, melanin-based color traits, body mass and immune response, were correlated at the genetic and/or phenotypic levels.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 86%

“…A potential explanation can be that the relative contribution of POMC gene to these complex traits related to physiology and metabolism is relatively minor compared with its contribution to melanin coloration. Alternatively, the influence of other important candidate genes involved in physiological and metabolic functions, for example, the major histocompatibility complex (Mhc) genes, may be biased among those traits (Bonneaud et al, 2009). The melanocortin system is involved in many different physiological and behavioral functions (Ducrest et al, 2008).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Multivariate heredity of melanin-based coloration, body mass and immunity

Vergara

et al. 2013

Heredity

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The genetic covariation among different traits may cause the appearance of correlated response to selection on multivariate phenotypes. Genes responsible for the expression of melanin-based color traits are also involved in other important physiological functions such as immunity and metabolism by pleiotropy, suggesting the possibility of multivariate evolution. However, little is known about the relationship between melanin coloration and these functions at the additive genetic level in wild vertebrates. From a multivariate perspective, we simultaneously explored inheritance and selection of melanin coloration, body mass and phytohemagglutinin (PHA)-mediated immune response by using long-term data over an 18-year period collected in a wild population of the common kestrel Falco tinnunculus. Pedigree-based quantitative genetic analyses showed negative genetic covariance between melanin-based coloration and body mass in male adults and positive genetic covariance between body mass and PHA-mediated immune response in fledglings as predicted by pleiotropic effects of melanocortin receptor activity. Multiple selection analyses showed an increased fitness in male adults with intermediate phenotypic values for melanin color and body mass. In male fledglings, there was evidence for a disruptive selection on rump gray color, but a stabilizing selection on PHA-mediated immune response. Our results provide an insight into the evolution of multivariate traits genetically related with melanin-based coloration. The differences in multivariate inheritance and selection between male and female kestrels might have resulted in sexual dimorphism in size and color. When pleiotropic effects are present, coloration can evolve through a complex pathway involving correlated response to selection on multivariate traits.

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“…Less information is available from wild species' populations, with contrasting outcomes in the few studies available. Thus, whereas some studies have found support for associations of MHC variation and immunocompetence (Bonneaud, Richard, Faivre, Westerdahl, & Sorci, ; Charbonnel et al, ; Cutrera, Zenuto, & Lacey, ; Kurtz et al, ; Lukasch et al, ), others have provided no clear evidence for their existence (Bonneaud, Sinsheimer, Richard, Chastel, & Sorci, ; Cutrera, Zenuto, & Lacey, ; Ekblom, Hasselquist, & Sæther, ; Montano‐Frías, Vera‐Massieu, Álvarez‐Martínez, Flores‐Morán, & Acevedo‐Whitehouse, ; Rodríguez, Broggi, Alcaide, Negro, & Figuerola, ; Sin et al, ). Such contrasting results may indicate the absence of a general biological association between MHC variation and immunocompetence, which may arise only in certain species, populations and/or ecological contexts.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Lack of statistical power as a major limitation in understanding MHC‐mediated immunocompetence in wild vertebrate populations

et al. 2019

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Disentangling the sources of variation in developing an effective immune response against pathogens is of major interest to immunoecology and evolutionary biology. To date, the link between immunocompetence and genetic variation at the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) has received little attention in wild animals, despite the key role of MHC genes in activating the adaptive immune system. Although several studies point to a link between MHC and immunocompetence, negative findings have also been reported. Such disparate findings suggest that limited statistical power might be affecting studies on this topic, owing to insufficient sample sizes and/or a generally small effect of MHC on the immunocompetence of wild vertebrates. To clarify this issue, we investigated the link between MHC variation and seven immunocompetence proxies in a large sample of barn owls and estimated the effect sizes and statistical power of this and published studies on this topic. We found that MHC poorly explained variation in immunocompetence of barn owls, with small‐to‐moderate associations between MHC and immunocompetence in owls (effect size: .1 ≥ r ≤ .3) similar to other vertebrates studied to date. Such small‐to‐moderate effects were largely associated with insufficient power, which was only sufficient (>0.8) to detect moderate‐to‐large effect sizes (r ≥ .3). Thus, studies linking MHC variation with immunocompetence in wild populations are underpowered to detect MHC effects, which are likely to be of generally small magnitude. Larger sample sizes (>200) will be required to achieve sufficient power in future studies aiming to robustly test for a link between MHC variation and immunocompetence.

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Mhcpolymorphisms fail to explain the heritability of phytohaemagglutinin-induced skin swelling in a wild passerine

Cited by 20 publications

References 27 publications

Determinants and short‐term physiological consequences of PHA immune response in lesser kestrel nestlings

Determinants and short‐term physiological consequences of PHA immune response in lesser kestrel nestlings

Multivariate heredity of melanin-based coloration, body mass and immunity

Lack of statistical power as a major limitation in understanding MHC‐mediated immunocompetence in wild vertebrate populations

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