精子储存诱导了的免疫成本
Boris Baer1, Sophie A O Armitage, Jacobus J Boomsma
1Institute of Biology, Department of Population Biology, Universitetsparken 15, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark. bcbaer@bi.ku.dk
Nature
|June 17, 2006
概括
女王将免疫防御换成精子储存,影响长期生存. 储存更多的精子,特别是来自多个雄性的精子,可以减少女王的数量.
科学领域:
- 昆虫的生殖生物学 昆虫的生殖生物学
- 动物行为 动物行为
- 免疫学 免疫学 免疫学
背景情况:
- 女王是异常长寿的昆虫,只交配一次,并储存精子多年.
- 女王的生殖成功受到储存精子的限制,但储存限制的原因尚不清楚.
- 精子储存对于单一交配事件的物种的长期繁殖至关重要.
研究的目的:
- 为了调查与女王的精子储存相关的成本.
- 为了确定精子储存是否会在关键的殖民地建立阶段影响免疫功能.
- 探索精子量,交配多样性和女王免疫之间的关系.
主要方法:
- 在殖民地成立期间,研究了切叶的新交配的女王Atta colombica.
- 在殖民地启动后的不同时间点评估女王免疫反应.
- 量化精子负载和为储存的精子贡献的男性的数量.
- 与精子储存参数相关的免疫标记.
主要成果:
- 女王免疫反应最初增加后巢穴完成,但在第九天下降.
- 在殖民地成立九天后,储存的精子数量和免疫反应之间存在负相关性.
- 储存精子 (更多的男性) 的遗传多样性增加与较低的免疫反应有关.
结论:
- 精子储存在殖民地成立期间以降低免疫力的形式产生了重大成本.
- 这种权衡表明短期生存和长期生殖潜力之间的平衡.
- 与多个雄性交配可能会给精子储存带来额外的免疫学成本.
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