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Venom Complexity in a Pitviper Produced by Facultative Parthenogenesis.
J J Calvete1, N R Casewell2, U Hernández-Guzmán3,4
1Evolutionary and Translational Venomics Laboratory, CSIC, Valencia, Spain. jcalvete@ibv.csic.es.
Scientific Reports
|August 3, 2018
Summary
Facultative parthenogenesis (FP), a form of asexual reproduction, surprisingly maintains complex traits like snake venom in offspring. This suggests FP has greater ecological and evolutionary significance than previously understood.
Area of Science:
- Evolutionary Biology
- Genetics
- Herpetology
Background:
- Facultative parthenogenesis (FP) is asexual reproduction in species that normally reproduce sexually.
- In vertebrates, FP often involves automictic development, potentially reducing genetic diversity.
- FP's impact on key phenotypic traits, particularly in reptiles, remains largely unstudied.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the phenotypic consequences of facultative parthenogenesis in a pitviper.
- To assess the impact of FP on venom composition and function, traits linked to fitness.
- To evaluate the evolutionary and ecological significance of FP in squamate reptiles.
Main Methods:
- Comparative analysis of venom from a parthenogenetic pitviper and its maternal lineage.
- Assessment of venom composition and functional similarity.
- Evaluation of offspring's phenotypic characteristics related to fitness.
Main Results:
- Parthenogenetic pitviper venom composition and function closely resembled its mother and conspecifics.
- The reduction in heterozygosity from FP did not significantly impair prey-capturing ability.
- Offspring produced via FP retained complex, fitness-associated phenotypic traits.
Conclusions:
- Facultative parthenogenesis in pitvipers does not appear to significantly impact essential fitness traits like venom.
- The findings challenge assumptions about the genetic consequences of automixis and FP.
- FP may have greater ecological and evolutionary importance than previously recognized, especially concerning gene inheritance.
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