Experimental evidence for the role of sexual selection in the evolution of cuticular hydrocarbons in the dung beetle, <i>Onthophagus taurus</i>

Berson, Jacob D.; García‐González, Francisco; Simmons, Leigh W.

doi:10.1111/jeb.13519

Cited by 13 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 66 publications

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“…Evolutionary genetic studies on CHC biosynthesis also need to account for sex-specific differences in the regulation of CHC biosynthesis (e.g., Foley et al 2007;Dembeck et al 2015;Luo et al 2019). Despite sharing the same genes in principle, sexes can show pronounced differences in their CHC profiles, qualitatively as well as quantitatively (e.g., Buellesbach et al 2013;Berdan et al 2019;Berson et al 2019a). As has already been demonstrated, numerous CHC biosynthesis genes seem to show a strong expression bias in one particular sex with a pronounced sex-specific impact on the respective CHC profile (Chertemps et al 2006(Chertemps et al , 2007Dembeck et al 2015, see Table 1 and S1).…”

Section: Sex-specificity and Gene Expression Levelsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Advances in deciphering the genetic basis of insect cuticular hydrocarbon biosynthesis and variation

2020

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Cuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs) have two fundamental functions in insects. They protect terrestrial insects against desiccation and serve as signaling molecules in a wide variety of chemical communication systems. It has been hypothesized that these pivotal dual traits for adaptation to both desiccation and signaling have contributed to the considerable evolutionary success of insects. CHCs have been extensively studied concerning their variation, behavioral impact, physiological properties, and chemical compositions. However, our understanding of the genetic underpinnings of CHC biosynthesis has remained limited and mostly biased towards one particular model organism (Drosophila). This rather narrow focus has hampered the establishment of a comprehensive view of CHC genetics across wider phylogenetic boundaries. This review attempts to integrate new insights and recent knowledge gained in the genetics of CHC biosynthesis, which is just beginning to incorporate work on more insect taxa beyond Drosophila. It is intended to provide a stepping stone towards a wider and more general understanding of the genetic mechanisms that gave rise to the astonishing diversity of CHC compounds across different insect taxa. Further research in this field is encouraged to aim at better discriminating conserved versus taxon-specific genetic elements underlying CHC variation. This will be instrumental in greatly expanding our knowledge of the origins and variation of genes governing the biosynthesis of these crucial phenotypic traits that have greatly impacted insect behavior, physiology, and evolution.

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Section: Sex-specificity and Gene Expression Levelsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Advances in deciphering the genetic basis of insect cuticular hydrocarbon biosynthesis and variation

2020

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“…In many insects, CHCs have been co-opted to serve as chemical signals (pheromones) that mediate intraspecific communication [19,20]. Sexually dimorphic cuticular hydrocarbon (SDCHC) profiles are widespread in insects [21][22][23], but the regulatory networks that underlie the formation of SDCHCs largely remain unknown. Considerable progress has been made toward understanding the genetic basis of hydrocarbon (HC) biosynthesis and CHC variation in insects.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Modulation of fatty acid elongation in cockroaches sustains sexually dimorphic hydrocarbons and female attractiveness

et al. 2021

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Insect cuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs) serve as important intersexual signaling chemicals and generally show variation between the sexes, but little is known about the generation of sexually dimorphic hydrocarbons (SDHCs) in insects. In this study, we report the molecular mechanism and biological significance that underlie the generation of SDHC in the German cockroach Blattella germanica. Sexually mature females possess more C29 CHCs, especially the contact sex pheromone precursor 3,11-DimeC29. RNA interference (RNAi) screen against the fatty acid elongase family members combined with heterologous expression of the genes in yeast revealed that both BgElo12 and BgElo24 were involved in hydrocarbon (HC) production, but BgElo24 is of wide catalytic activities and is able to provide substrates for BgElo12, and only the female-enriched BgElo12 is responsible for sustaining female-specific HC profile. Repressing BgElo12 masculinized the female CHC profile, decreased contact sex pheromone level, and consequently reduced the sexual attractiveness of female cockroaches. Moreover, the asymmetric expression of BgElo12 between the sexes is modulated by sex differentiation cascade. Specifically, male-specific BgDsx represses the transcription of BgElo12 in males, while BgTra is able to remove this effect in females. Our study reveals a novel molecular mechanism responsible for the formation of SDHCs and also provide evidences on shaping of the SDHCs by sexual selection, as females use them to generate high levels of contact sex pheromone.

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“…Expression of Obp56h and CG10514 are correlated with the production of CHCs that are involved in social behavior in D. melanogaster (Shorter et al 2016) and Drosophila serrata (McGraw et al 2011), respectively. CHCs are often under strong sexual selection across insect systems, with individual or combinations of CHCs serving as important mating cues (Thomas and Simmons 2009,Berson et al 2019a, b). The correlation of these genes with CHC profiles in Drosophila provides additional evidence that Obp56h expression, and the house fly co-expression module more generally, are related to male mating behavior, and possibly under sexual selection.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Transregulation of an odorant binding protein by a proto-Y chromosome affects male courtship in house fly

Adhikari

Hassan

et al. 2021

Preprint

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A major goal in evolutionary biology is to understand how natural variation is maintained in sexually selected and sexually dimorphic traits. Hypotheses to explain genetic variation in sexually selected traits include context-dependent fitness effects, epistatic interactions, and pleiotropic constraints. The house fly, Musca domestica, is a promising system to investigate how these factors affect polymorphism in sexually selected traits. Two common Y chromosomes (YM and IIIM) segregate as stable polymorphisms in natural house fly populations, appear to be locally adapted to different thermal habitats, and differentially affect male mating success. Here, we perform a meta-analysis of RNA-seq data which identifies genes encoding odorant binding proteins (in the Obp56h family) as differentially expressed between the heads of males carrying YM and IIIM. Differential expression of Obp56h has been associated with variation in male mating behavior in Drosophila melanogaster. We find differences in male mating behavior between house flies carrying the Y chromosomes that are consistent with the relationship between male mating behavior and expression of Obp56h in D. melanogaster. We also find that male mating behaviors in house fly are affected by temperature, and the same temperature differentials further affect the expression of Obp56h genes. However, we show that temperature-dependent effects cannot explain the maintenance of genetic variation for male mating behavior in house fly. Using a network analysis and allele-specific expression measurements, we find evidence that the house fly IIIM chromosome is a trans regulator of Obp56h gene expression. Moreover, we find that Obp56h disproportionately affects the expression of genes on the D. melanogaster chromosome that is homologous to the house fly IIIM chromosome. This provides evidence for a conserved trans regulatory loop involving Obp56h expression that affects male mating behavior in flies. The complex regulatory architecture controlling Obp56h expression suggests that variation in male mating behavior could be maintained by epistasis or pleiotropic constraints.

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Experimental evidence for the role of sexual selection in the evolution of cuticular hydrocarbons in the dung beetle, Onthophagus taurus

Cited by 13 publications

References 66 publications

Advances in deciphering the genetic basis of insect cuticular hydrocarbon biosynthesis and variation

Advances in deciphering the genetic basis of insect cuticular hydrocarbon biosynthesis and variation

Modulation of fatty acid elongation in cockroaches sustains sexually dimorphic hydrocarbons and female attractiveness

Transregulation of an odorant binding protein by a proto-Y chromosome affects male courtship in house fly

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