Untersuchungen zur reproduktiven Fitness lebender weiblicher Feldhasen aus unterschiedlichen Habitaten

Göritz, Frank; Fassbender, M; Broich, Alexandra; Quest, M; Lange, Alexander; Blöttner, S.; Gilles, M.; Lengwinat, T.; Spittler, H.; Hildebrandt, T.B.

doi:10.1007/bf02239821

Cited by 7 publications

(7 citation statements)

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“…The expectation from this hypothesis is that a greater proportion of females failing to attract a mate during the breeding season would be homozygous for MHC genes. We observed that pattern in this study, but the mechanism requires a male dominated mate choice system, and it is not clear that this is the case for brown hares (Göritz et al. 2001) or why it would operate more strongly, or even exclusively, in the Belgian populations.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 55%

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Homozygosity at a class II MHC locus depresses female reproductive ability in European brown hares

et al. 2010

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The link between adaptive genetic variation, individual fitness and wildlife population dynamics is fundamental to the study of ecology and evolutionary biology. In this study, a Bayesian modelling approach was employed to examine whether individual variability at two major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class II loci (DQA and DRB) and eight neutral microsatellite loci explained variation in female reproductive success for wild populations of European brown hare (Lepus europaeus). We examined two aspects of reproduction: the ability to reproduce (sterility) and the number of offspring produced (fecundity). Samples were collected from eastern Austria, experiencing a sub-continental climatic regime, and from Belgium with a more Atlantic-influenced climate. As expected, reproductive success (both sterility and fecundity) was significantly influenced by age regardless of sampling locality. For Belgium, there was also a significant effect of DQA heterozygosity in determining whether females were able to reproduce (95% highest posterior density interval of the regression parameter [-3.64, -0.52]), but no corresponding effect was found for Austria. In neither region was reproduction significantly associated with heterozygosity at the DRB locus. DQA heterozygotes from both regions also showed a clear tendency, but not significantly so, to produce a larger number of offspring. Predictive simulations showed that, in Belgium, sub-populations of homozygotes will have higher rates of sterile individuals and lower average offspring numbers than heterozygotes. No similar effect is predicted for Austria. The mechanism for the spatial MHC effect is likely to be connected to mate choice for increased heterozygosity or to the linkage of certain MHC alleles with lethal recessives at other loci.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 55%

“…Living above ground they receive little protection against harsh environmental conditions and are usually left alone and only visited by their mother once a day for a very short period of time to suckle (Hartl et al. 1995; Göritz et al. 2001).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Homozygosity at a class II MHC locus depresses female reproductive ability in European brown hares

et al. 2010

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“…Their development is incredibly rapid with an increase in body weight by eight to tenfold of birth weight within the first month of life. Living above ground, they receive little protection against harsh environmental conditions and are usually left alone and only visited by their mother once a day for a very short period of time to suckle (Göritz et al 2001; Hartl et al 1995). The sudden exposure to aboveground environmental challenges after an intrauterine life, with virtually no protection from their mother, together with their rapid development suggests a very efficient immune system to guarantee sufficient energy allocation to growth.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evolutionary genetics of MHC class II beta genes in the brown hare, Lepus europaeus

et al. 2011

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The genes of the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) are attractive candidates for investigating the link between adaptive variation and individual fitness. High levels of diversity at the MHC are thought to be the result of parasite-mediated selection and there is growing evidence to support this theory. Most studies, however, target just a single gene within the MHC and infer any evidence of selection to be representative of the entire gene region. Here we present data from three MHC class II beta genes (DPB, DQB, and DRB) for brown hares in two geographic regions and compare them against previous results from a class II alpha-chain gene (DQA). We report moderate levels of diversity and high levels of population differentiation in the DQB and DRB genes (Na = 11, Dest = 0.071 and Na = 15, Dest = 0.409, respectively), but not for the DPB gene (Na = 4, Dest = 0.00). We also detected evidence of positive selection within the peptide binding region of the DQB and DRB genes (95% CI, ω > 1.0) but found no signature of selection for DPB. Mutation and recombination were both found to be important processes shaping the evolution of the class II genes. Our findings suggest that while diversifying selection is a significant contributor to the generally high levels of MHC diversity, it does not act in a uniform manner across the entire MHC class II region. The beta-chain genes that we have characterized provide a valuable set of MHC class II markers for future studies of the evolution of adaptive variation in Leporids.

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“…In the examination of Nikodémusz et al, (1985) the reproductive organs of female brown hares (n= 183) was studied, and it was found that 39.5% of the samples had some pathological lesion. In Germany, 114 female brown hares were examined and neither the pregnancy rate (69.8%) nor the health status and the number of fetuses (2.02 ± 0,1) indicated any impairment of reproductive fitness (Görlitz et al, 2001). The temperate oceanic climate in Belgium and the temperate continental climate in lower Austria did not significantly affect the annual reproductory performance of female brown hares (Hackländer et al, 2011).…”

Section: Tests Of Weight Of Testiclesmentioning

confidence: 95%

A High Genetic Similarity Among the Selected Mango (Mangifera Indica L.) Genotypes-Cultivars Demonstrated by SSR Fingerprinting Assay

2020

THE JAPS

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A decreasing tendency in the populations of the European brown hare can be observed in the whole of Europe from the mid-1960s to the present day. Among the reasons for declining populations fertility indicators of females are also mentioned. The aim of our study was to determine the reproductive parameters of the species in eastern Hungary. During the years 2015-2016, we studied two hundred animals (121♀, 79♂). Altogether, 121 uteri (81 adult and 40 juvenile) and 79 testicles were examined. The number of placental scars showed us the number of offspring in reproductive periods. The age of hares was estimated based on the weight of dried eye lens. The number of placental scars in the general linear model was significantly affected by hunting areas, the age of animals, the interaction of the former two, and also by body weight and kidney fat indices. The age of hares, the hunting year, the effect of the interaction of the former two, and body weight seriously contributed to the weight of the testicles. Based on the number of placental scars, 70.37% of adult and 62.50% of juvenile females were proved to be capable of reproduction. One can conclude from the above that although fertility indicators may play an important role in the decreasing trend in the numbers of Hungarian brown hare populations, they are definitely not the main causes.

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Untersuchungen zur reproduktiven Fitness lebender weiblicher Feldhasen aus unterschiedlichen Habitaten

Cited by 7 publications

References 3 publications

Homozygosity at a class II MHC locus depresses female reproductive ability in European brown hares

Homozygosity at a class II MHC locus depresses female reproductive ability in European brown hares

Evolutionary genetics of MHC class II beta genes in the brown hare, Lepus europaeus

A High Genetic Similarity Among the Selected Mango (Mangifera Indica L.) Genotypes-Cultivars Demonstrated by SSR Fingerprinting Assay

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