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Journal of Economic Entomology Jun 2020The mating attributes in relating to parasitism and progeny production capacity of the parasitoid Habrobracon hebetor Say, using Plodia interpunctella (Hübner) as a...
The mating attributes in relating to parasitism and progeny production capacity of the parasitoid Habrobracon hebetor Say, using Plodia interpunctella (Hübner) as a host, were investigated in laboratory studies. The results indicated that 100% of the host larvae were parasitized by different individuals of H. hebetor females that were mated by the same male. Mating duration did not differ significantly among different successive matings with different females and had no effect on the rate of parasitism. In general, pairs that had their copulation early after emergence exhibited the maximum rate of parasitism as compared to delayed intervals. Moreover, the age of the H. hebetor females had no effect on the percentage of parasitism. The maximum parasitism percentage was recorded for the H. hebetor individuals that had been developed from the age group of the 6-d-old adults. The male: female ratios did not differ significantly among the female age groups. The percentage of parasitism clearly indicated a decrease with the increase of the male: female ratio. Overall, the results of the present work can be further utilized in mass rearing and release of H. hebetor in biological control programs in stored product protection.
Topics: Animals; Female; Host-Parasite Interactions; Hymenoptera; Larva; Male; Moths; Pest Control, Biological; Wasps
PubMed: 32006017
DOI: 10.1093/jee/toaa014 -
Journal of Theoretical Biology Jan 2022Besides egg fertilization, females of many taxa obtain direct fitness benefits from male mates, such as food, protection or paternal care. But males often increase their...
Besides egg fertilization, females of many taxa obtain direct fitness benefits from male mates, such as food, protection or paternal care. But males often increase their own fitness by mating with several females, among which they distribute sperm along with the above-mentioned benefits, reducing the benefits to individual females. These diverging interests lead to a conflict in which each female may try to ensure male fidelity and get exclusive access to male-provided benefits. Here, we use a theoretical model to show how a female of an externally fertilizing species may achieve mate fidelity by soliciting copulations at such a rate that the male has insufficient sperm left to increase his fitness with additional females. We show that three alternative condition-dependent evolutionarily stable mating relationships emerge in this scenario, based on whether one mate's preference for mating rate dominates, or the conflict is resolved by what amounts to negotiation. We demonstrate how these outcomes depend on some features of physiology, ecology, and behavior. In particular, a greater reproductive benefit to a female from exclusive access to a male partner-or the occasional tendency of females to withhold eggs during mating-can increase male fidelity; and continuous sperm regeneration rather than an initially-set stock of sperm allows for multiple within-pair mating across all three mating patterns.
Topics: Animals; Copulation; Female; Fertilizers; Male; Reproduction; Sexual Behavior, Animal; Spermatozoa
PubMed: 34627862
DOI: 10.1016/j.jtbi.2021.110926 -
Frontiers in Physiology 2021Diseases transmitted by female mosquitoes are public health issues in countries in the tropics and sub-tropics. As in other insects, females undergo behavioral and...
Diseases transmitted by female mosquitoes are public health issues in countries in the tropics and sub-tropics. As in other insects, females undergo behavioral and physiological changes upon mating that principally act to facilitate the production of progeny. The primary effectors of female post-mating responses are male-derived seminal proteins that are transferred to females during mating. Increased male age reduces ejaculate function in numerous taxa and alters seminal protein composition in , but the impacts of male age on female post-mating responses are unknown. Here, we used "old" (21-22 days old) and "young" (4-5 days old) males to assess the influence of male age on oviposition, fertility, and re-mating incidence in their mates. We also examined how age influenced paternity share in females initially mated to young or old males that subsequently re-mated with a transgenic male that transferred RFP-labeled sperm and whose progeny inherited a larval-expressed GFP marker. We found that increased male age had no effect on female fecundity or fertility but significantly impacted their ability to prevent re-mating in their mates-more than half (54.5%) of the females mated to an old male re-mated, compared to 24% of females initially mated to a young male. Polyandrous females displayed first male precedence regardless of the age of their initial mate. However, young males were better able to compete with rival male sperm, siring significantly more progeny (77%) compared to old males (64%). Young males had significantly more sperm in their seminal vesicles than old males at the time of mating, although males of both age groups transferred similar numbers of sperm to their mates. Our results suggest that male senescence differentially impacts the induction of some post-mating changes in females. As the effect of age may be further exacerbated in the field, age-related declines in male ability to induce sexual refractoriness have implications for population control programs that release adults into the environment.
PubMed: 34354600
DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2021.691221 -
Yeast (Chichester, England) Oct 2004We have previously reported that the HMRa-bearing restriction fragment of a rho degrees sir4-11 strain (HMLalpha-MATalpha-HMRa), which acts as an alpha-mater because of...
We have previously reported that the HMRa-bearing restriction fragment of a rho degrees sir4-11 strain (HMLalpha-MATalpha-HMRa), which acts as an alpha-mater because of being rho degrees , changes its electrophoretic mobility when the strain mates with a certain group of a-mating strains (HMLalpha-MATa-HMRa). In this study, we found that the sir4-11 strain being rho degrees was not essential for this phenomenon and also that the altered form of the fragment contained HMRalpha in place of HMRa. Furthermore, we observed conversion of HMLa to HMLalpha in the cross in which a sir4-11 HMLa-MATalpha-HMRalpha strain was mated with a representative of the above-mentioned a-mating strain. In addition, when this a-mating strain was mated with a SIR(+) HMLalpha-MATa-HMRalpha strain, the resultant diploid was found to be HMLalpha/HMLalpha MATa/MATalphaHMRa/HMRalpha, indicating that conversion of MATa to MATalpha had taken place in the course of mating. From all these observations, we conclude that there is a group of S. cerevisiae strains that carries factor(s) that induces conversion of a mating-type cassette of the mating partner to alpha mating-type cassette and that this mating type cassette conversion takes place in all three mating type loci, HML, MAT and HMR, if the loci are in the non-silenced condition.
Topics: Base Sequence; Blotting, Southern; Chromosome Walking; Chromosomes, Fungal; Crosses, Genetic; DNA, Fungal; Genes, Fungal; Genes, Mating Type, Fungal; Models, Genetic; Molecular Sequence Data; Ploidies; Polymerase Chain Reaction; Saccharomyces cerevisiae; Sequence Alignment
PubMed: 15484290
DOI: 10.1002/yea.1153 -
The American Naturalist Feb 2019Assortative mating in animals can have substantial evolutionary impact. Numerous reports also make it appear to be pervasive in occurrence. In assortative mating,... (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis
Assortative mating in animals can have substantial evolutionary impact. Numerous reports also make it appear to be pervasive in occurrence. In assortative mating, defined here in behavioral terms, animals select their mates according to a particular shared trait such that mated individuals phenotypically resemble each other more than expected by chance. Body size is a widely studied assortment trait. This is especially relevant for anuran amphibians (frogs and toads), among whom reproductive advantages may accrue to large individuals of both sexes. Anurans also exhibit discrete forms of male mating behavior. Sedentary calling behavior of "sitters" allows for female choice, whereas fighting for possession of mates by "scramblers" precludes female choice. Size-assortative mating in anurans should therefore be a property of sitters, not scramblers. I used meta-analysis to assess the occurrence of true size-assortative mating in relation to mating behavior and other variables in 282 studies of 68 species of anurans. I found publication bias against reporting nonsignificant results and analytical bias resulting from pooling of samples collected at different times or places (Simpson's paradox). Pooled samples significantly inflated the apparent occurrence and strength of size-assortative mating. Controlling for such biases left little credible evidence for size-assortative mating behavior in any anurans. Instead, large-male advantage among scramblers was associated with a secondary pattern of concomitant nonrandom mating. In this disproportionate mating, neither sex behaves according to mate choice rules that could lead to consistently strong assortment. It should thus have relatively little evolutionary impact compared to true assortative mating.
Topics: Animals; Anura; Body Size; Female; Male; Mating Preference, Animal
PubMed: 30720359
DOI: 10.1086/701124 -
Journal of Chemical Ecology Apr 2024Insect exocrine gland products can be involved in sexual communication, defense, territory labelling, aggregation and alarm. In the vinegar fly Drosophila melanogaster...
Insect exocrine gland products can be involved in sexual communication, defense, territory labelling, aggregation and alarm. In the vinegar fly Drosophila melanogaster the ejaculatory bulb synthesizes and releases 11-cis-Vaccenyl acetate (cVa). This pheromone, transferred to the female during copulation, affects aggregation, courtship and male-male aggressive behaviors. To determine the ability of male flies to replenish their cVa levels, males of a control laboratory strain and from the desat1 pheromone-defective mutant strain were allowed to mate successively with several females. We measured mating frequency, duration and latency, the amount of cVa transferred to mated females and the residual cVa in tested males. Mating duration remained constant with multiple matings, but we found that the amount of cVa transferred to females declined with multiple matings, indicating that, over short, biologically-relevant periods, replenishment of the pheromone does not keep up with mating frequency, resulting in the transfer of varying quantities of cVa. Adult responses to cVa are affected by early developmental exposure to this pheromone; our revelation of quantitative variation in the amount of cVa transferred to females in the event of multiple matings by a male suggests variable responses to cVa shown by adults produced by such matings. This implies that the natural role of this compound may be richer than suggested by laboratory experiments that study only one mating event and its immediate behavioral or neurobiological consequences.
Topics: Animals; Male; Female; Drosophila melanogaster; Sexual Behavior, Animal; Sex Attractants; Oleic Acids; Pheromones; Drosophila Proteins; Fatty Acid Desaturases
PubMed: 38270733
DOI: 10.1007/s10886-023-01468-5 -
PloS One 2013Exposure to chemosensory signals from unfamiliar males can terminate pregnancy in recently mated female mice. The number of tyrosine hydroxylase-positive neurons in the...
Exposure to chemosensory signals from unfamiliar males can terminate pregnancy in recently mated female mice. The number of tyrosine hydroxylase-positive neurons in the main olfactory bulb has been found to increase following mating and has been implicated in preventing male-induced pregnancy block during the post-implantation period. In contrast, pre-implantation pregnancy block is mediated by the vomeronasal system, and is thought to be prevented by selective inhibition of the mate's pregnancy blocking chemosignals, at the level of the accessory olfactory bulb. The objectives of this study were firstly to identify the level of the vomeronasal pathway at which selective inhibition of the mate's pregnancy blocking chemosignals occurs. Secondly, to determine whether a post-mating increase in tyrosine hydroxylase-positive neurons is observed in the vomeronasal system, which could play a role in preventing pre-implantation pregnancy block. Immunohistochemical staining revealed that mating induced an increase in tyrosine-hydroxylase positive neurons in the arcuate hypothalamus of BALB/c females, and suppressed c-Fos expression in these neurons in response to mating male chemosignals. This selective suppression of c-Fos response to mating male chemosignals was not apparent at earlier levels of the pregnancy-blocking neural pathway in the accessory olfactory bulb or corticomedial amygdala. Immunohistochemical staining revealed an increase in the number of tyrosine hydroxylase-positive neurons in the accessory olfactory bulb of BALB/c female mice following mating. However, increased dopamine-mediated inhibition in the accessory olfactory bulb is unlikely to account for the prevention of pregnancy block to the mating male, as tyrosine hydroxylase expression did not increase in females of the C57BL/6 strain, which show normal mate recognition. These findings reveal an association of mating with increased dopaminergic modulation in the pregnancy block pathway and support the hypothesis that mate recognition prevents pregnancy block by suppressing the activation of arcuate dopamine release.
Topics: Amygdala; Animals; Arcuate Nucleus of Hypothalamus; Dopamine; Embryo Implantation; Female; Gene Expression Regulation; Male; Mice; Mice, Inbred BALB C; Mice, Inbred C57BL; Neurons; Olfactory Bulb; Pheromones; Pregnancy; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-fos; Sexual Behavior, Animal; Synaptic Transmission; Tyrosine 3-Monooxygenase; Vomeronasal Organ
PubMed: 23936125
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0069943 -
Journal of Insect Physiology 2020Aedes aegypti is the primary vector of several arboviruses that impact human health including the dengue, Zika, and yellow fever viruses. The potential of Ae. aegypti...
Aedes aegypti is the primary vector of several arboviruses that impact human health including the dengue, Zika, and yellow fever viruses. The potential of Ae. aegypti females to transmit viruses is enhanced by mating-induced behavioral and physiological changes that increase female host-seeking behaviors, blood-feeding frequency and longevity. The mating-induced changes are due to female receipt of male seminal fluid proteins (SFPs) during copulation. SFPs also inhibit female re-mating-re-mating incidence is significantly reduced in the initial hours after mating and nearly absent after 24 h. Males, however, are not limited in the number of females they can inseminate and are able to mate with multiple females in succession. As successive mating depletes SFPs, we examined parameters of fertility and re-mating incidence in females after mating with recently mated males. Males of two Ae. aegypti strains (Colombian and Thai) were mated five consecutive times and fecundity, resulting larvae and hatch percentage in each female of the mating sequence was assessed. In both strains, we found that males can mate three times in succession without impacting fertility in their mates. However, significant declines in fecundity, resulting larvae, and hatch percentage were observed after a third mating. Male size influenced female fecundity and fertility as mates of small males showed further reductions compared to mates of big males after mating consecutively. Seven days after the consecutive mating assays, the re-mating rate of females mated fifth in succession was significantly increased (Colombian strain: 33%; Thai strain: 48%) compared to females mated first (0% in both strains). Re-mating incidence was further increased in small, Thai strain males where 82% of fifth mated females re-mated compared to 0% of first mated females. Finally, we show that regardless of male size, mates of experimental males were similarly fertile to mates of control males when mated for a sixth time 48 h after the consecutive mating assays, showing that males recover fertility after 2 d. Our results show that male sexual history influences fertility and re-mating incidence of Ae. aegypti females.
Topics: Aedes; Animals; Copulation; Female; Fertility; Incidence; Insect Proteins; Male; Mosquito Vectors; Reproduction; Semen; Sexual Behavior, Animal; Zika Virus Infection
PubMed: 32032591
DOI: 10.1016/j.jinsphys.2020.104019 -
Journal of Evolutionary Biology Sep 2019Heterospecific mating frequency is critical to hybrid zone dynamics and can directly impact the strength of reproductive barriers and patterns of introgression. The...
Heterospecific mating frequency is critical to hybrid zone dynamics and can directly impact the strength of reproductive barriers and patterns of introgression. The effectiveness of post-mating prezygotic (PMPZ) reproductive barriers, which include reduced fecundity via heterospecific matings and conspecific sperm precedence, may depend on the number, identity and order of mates. Studies of PMPZ barriers suggest that they may be important in many systems, but whether these barriers are effective at realistic heterospecific mating frequencies has not been tested. Here, we evaluate the strength of cryptic reproductive isolation in two leaf beetles (Chrysochus auratus and C. cobaltinus) in the context of a range of heterospecific mating frequencies observed in natural populations. We found both species benefited from multiple matings, but the benefits were greater in C. cobaltinus and extended to heterospecific matings. We found that PMPZ barriers greatly limited hybrid production by C. auratus females with moderate heterospecific mating frequencies, but that their effectiveness diminished at higher heterospecific mating frequencies. In contrast, there was no evidence for PMPZ barriers in C. cobaltinus females at any heterospecific mating frequency. We show that integrating realistic estimates of cryptic isolation with information on relative abundance and heterospecific mating frequency in the field substantially improves our understanding of the strong directional bias in F1 production previously documented in the Chrysochus hybrid zone. Our results demonstrate that heterospecific mating frequency is critical to understanding the impact of cryptic post-copulatory barriers on hybrid zone structure and dynamics, and that future studies of such barriers should incorporate field-relevant heterospecific mating frequencies.
Topics: Animals; Coleoptera; Copulation; Female; Genetic Fitness; Hybridization, Genetic; Male; Species Specificity
PubMed: 31162735
DOI: 10.1111/jeb.13495 -
Proceedings. Biological Sciences Jul 1998House mice (Mus musculus domesticus) avoid mating with individuals that are genetically similar at the major histocompatibility complex (MHC). Mice are able recognize...
House mice (Mus musculus domesticus) avoid mating with individuals that are genetically similar at the major histocompatibility complex (MHC). Mice are able recognize MHC-similar individuals through specific odour cues. However, to mate disassortatively for MHC genes, individuals must have a referent, either themselves (self-inspection) or close kin (familial imprinting), with which to compare the MHC identity of potential mates. Although studies on MHC-dependent mating preferences often assume that individuals use self-inspection, laboratory experiments with male mice indicate that they use familial imprinting, i.e. males learn the MHC identity of their family and then avoid mating with females carrying 'familial' MHC alleles. To determine if female mice use familial imprinting, we cross-fostered wild-derived female mouse pups into MHC-dissimilar families, and then tested if this procedure reversed their mating preferences compared with in-fostered controls. Our observations of the female's mating behaviour in seminatural social conditions and the genetic typing of their progeny both indicated that females avoided mating with males carrying MHC genes of their foster family, supporting the familial imprinting hypothesis. We show that MHC-dependent familial imprinting potentially provides a more effective mechanism for avoiding kin matings and reducing inbreeding than self-inspection.
Topics: Animals; Female; Genotype; Haplotypes; Inbreeding; Major Histocompatibility Complex; Male; Mice; Odorants; Pregnancy; Sexual Behavior, Animal
PubMed: 9718737
DOI: 10.1098/rspb.1998.0433