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Whole Mount Labeling of Cilia in the Main Olfactory System of Mice
Published on: December 27, 2014
Signalling components of the house mouse mate recognition system
B Bímová1, T Albrecht, M Macholán
1Department of Population Biology, Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, CZ-675 02 Konesin, Studenec 122, Czech Republic. barabimova@centrum.cz
Behavioural Processes
|September 16, 2008
Summary
House mice exhibit subspecies-specific mate recognition, influencing gene flow and speciation. Urine and feces are key signals for house mouse (Mus musculus) strain recognition, differing between sexes and subspecies.
Area of Science:
- Evolutionary biology
- Animal behavior
- Genetics
Background:
- Subspecies-specific mate recognition can act as a barrier to gene flow, potentially leading to speciation.
- Assortative mating in house mice (Mus musculus) involves coevolving signals and receptors.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare the signaling ability of various cues (bedding, feces, urine, saliva, salivary androgen binding proteins) in mate choice between two wild-derived house mouse strains.
- To investigate strain- and sex-specific preferences in mate recognition systems.
Main Methods:
- Assessed mate choice preferences using bedding material, feces, urine, saliva, salivary androgen binding proteins (ABP), and combinations thereof.
- Utilized two wild-derived inbred strains: one Mus musculus musculus and one Mus musculus domesticus.
- Analyzed variation in assortative preferences between strains and sexes.
Main Results:
- Significant variation in assortative preferences was observed between the two strains and sexes.
- Mus musculus musculus individuals showed strongest preferences for urine-based signals.
- Mus musculus domesticus individuals displayed strain-specific preferences for feces; saliva was least preferred.
- No significant effect of two-compound cues was detected.
Conclusions:
- There is divergence in both stimulus production and preference within the recognition systems of the studied house mouse strains.
- Urine and feces, which can signal over extended periods, appear crucial for strain-specific recognition in house mice.
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