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Galván I, Alonso-Alvarez C. Individual quality via sensitivity to cysteine availability in a melanin-based honest signaling system. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2017; 220:2825-2833. [PMID: 28546507 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.160333] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2017] [Accepted: 05/21/2017] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
The evolution of honest animal communication is mostly understood through the handicap principle, which is intrinsically dependent on the concept of individual quality: low-quality individuals are prevented from producing high-quality signals because, if they did so, they would pay greater production costs than high-quality individuals. We tested an alternative explanation for the black bib size of male house sparrows, Passer domesticus, an honest signal of quality the expression of which is negatively related to levels of the pigment pheomelanin in the constituent feathers. We previously showed that experimental depletion of cysteine, which participates in pheomelanogenesis, improves the phenotype (bibs larger than in controls) of high-quality males (birds with largest bibs initially) only. Here, we conducted an experiment under opposite conditions, increasing the availability of dietary cysteine, and obtained opposite results: deteriorated phenotypes (bibs smaller than in controls) were only expressed by high-quality birds. Some birds were also treated with the pro-oxidant diquat dibromide, and we found that the cellular resistance to free radicals of high-quality birds benefited more from the antioxidant activity of cysteine against diquat than that of low-quality birds. These findings support the existence of a mechanism uncoupling cysteine and pheomelanin in low-quality birds that confers on them a low sensitivity to variations in cysteine availability. This constitutes an explanation for the evolution of signal honesty that overcomes the limitations of the handicap principle, because it provides a specific definition of individual quality and because costs are no longer required to prevent low-quality individuals from producing large signals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ismael Galván
- Ecologie Systématique Evolution, Université Paris-Sud, CNRS, AgroParisTech, Université Paris-Saclay, Orsay 91405 Cedex, France
| | - Carlos Alonso-Alvarez
- Department of Evolutionary Ecology, National Museum of Natural Sciences - CSIC, Madrid 28006, Spain
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Messina S, Eens M, Casasole G, AbdElgawad H, Asard H, Pinxten R, Costantini D. Experimental inhibition of a key cellular antioxidant affects vocal communication. Funct Ecol 2017. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2435.12825] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Simone Messina
- Behavioural Ecology & Ecophysiology Group Department of Biology University of Antwerp Universiteitsplein 1 2610 Wilrijk Belgium
| | - Marcel Eens
- Behavioural Ecology & Ecophysiology Group Department of Biology University of Antwerp Universiteitsplein 1 2610 Wilrijk Belgium
| | - Giulia Casasole
- Behavioural Ecology & Ecophysiology Group Department of Biology University of Antwerp Universiteitsplein 1 2610 Wilrijk Belgium
| | - Hamada AbdElgawad
- Integrated Molecular Plant Physiology Research Department of Biology University of Antwerp Antwerp Belgium
- Department of Botany Faculty of Science University of Beni‐Suef Beni‐Suef62511 Egypt
| | - Han Asard
- Integrated Molecular Plant Physiology Research Department of Biology University of Antwerp Antwerp Belgium
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- Behavioural Ecology & Ecophysiology Group Department of Biology University of Antwerp Universiteitsplein 1 2610 Wilrijk Belgium
- Faculty of Social Sciences Antwerp School of Education University of Antwerp Antwerp Belgium
| | - David Costantini
- Behavioural Ecology & Ecophysiology Group Department of Biology University of Antwerp Universiteitsplein 1 2610 Wilrijk Belgium
- UMR 7221 Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle 7 rue Cuvier 75231 Paris Cedex 05 France
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Rojas Mora A, Firth A, Blareau S, Vallat A, Helfenstein F. Oxidative stress affects sperm performance and ejaculate redox status in subordinate House Sparrows. J Exp Biol 2017; 220:2577-2588. [DOI: 10.1242/jeb.154799] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/13/2016] [Accepted: 05/02/2017] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Oxidative stress (OS) is the result of random cellular damage caused by reactive oxygen species that leads to cell death, ageing, or illness. Most physiological processes can result in OS, which in turn has been identified as a major cause of infertility. In promiscuous species, the fertilizing ability of the ejaculate partly determines the male reproductive success. When dominance determines access to fertile females, theory predicts that lower ranking males should increase resource investment into enhancing ejaculate quality. We hypothesized that subordinate males should thus prioritize antioxidant protection of their ejaculates to protect them from OS. We put this hypothesis to the test, by chronically dosing wild House Sparrows with diquat (∼1mg/kg), an herbicide that increases pro-oxidant generation. We found that, although they increased their antioxidant levels in the ejaculate, diquat-treated males produced sperm with reduced velocity. Importantly, and contrary to our hypothesis, males at the bottom of the hierarchy suffered the largest reduction in sperm velocity. We suggest that resource access hinders individuals' ability to cope with environmental hazards. Our results point at OS as a likely physiological mechanism mediating ejaculate quality, while individual ability to access resources may play a role in constraining the extent to which such resources can be allocated into the ejaculate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alfonso Rojas Mora
- Evolutionary Ecophysiology, Institute of Biology, University of Neuchatel, Neuchatel, Switzerland
| | - Alexandra Firth
- Evolutionary Ecophysiology, Institute of Biology, University of Neuchatel, Neuchatel, Switzerland
| | - Sophie Blareau
- Evolutionary Ecophysiology, Institute of Biology, University of Neuchatel, Neuchatel, Switzerland
| | - Armelle Vallat
- Neuchatel Platform of Analytical Chemistry, Institute of Chemistry, University of Neuchatel, Neuchatel, Switzerland
| | - Fabrice Helfenstein
- Evolutionary Ecophysiology, Institute of Biology, University of Neuchatel, Neuchatel, Switzerland
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Response to: Neurotoxicity of paraquat and paraquat-induced Parkinson's disease. J Transl Med 2016; 96:1030-4. [PMID: 27562309 DOI: 10.1038/labinvest.2016.83] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/13/2023] Open
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García-de Blas E, Mateo R, Alonso-Alvarez C. Specific carotenoid pigments in the diet and a bit of oxidative stress in the recipe for producing red carotenoid-based signals. PeerJ 2016; 4:e2237. [PMID: 27635308 PMCID: PMC5012267 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.2237] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/16/2016] [Accepted: 06/20/2016] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Colorful ornaments have been the focus of sexual selection studies since the work of Darwin. Yellow to red coloration is often produced by carotenoid pigments. Different hypotheses have been formulated to explain the evolution of these traits as signals of individual quality. Many of these hypotheses involve the existence of a signal production cost. The carotenoids necessary for signaling can only be obtained from food. In this line, carotenoid-based signals could reveal an individual’s capacity to find sufficient dietary pigments. However, the ingested carotenoids are often yellow and became transformed by the organism to produce pigments of more intense color (red ketocarotenoids). Biotransformation should involve oxidation reactions, although the exact mechanism is poorly known. We tested the hypothesis that carotenoid biotransformation could be costly because a certain level of oxidative stress is required to correctly perform the conversion. The carotenoid-based signals could thus reveal the efficiency of the owner in successfully managing this challenge. In a bird with ketocarotenoid-based ornaments (the red-legged partridge; Alectoris rufa), the availability of different carotenoids in the diet (i.e. astaxanthin, zeaxanthin and lutein) and oxidative stress were manipulated. The carotenoid composition was analyzed and quantified in the ornaments, blood, liver and fat. A number of oxidative stress biomarkers were also measured in the same tissues. First, we found that color and pigment levels in the ornaments depended on food levels of those carotenoids used as substrates in biotransformation. Second, we found that birds exposed to mild levels of a free radical generator (diquat) developed redder bills and deposited higher amounts of ketocarotenoids (astaxanthin) in ornaments. Moreover, the same diquat-exposed birds also showed a weaker resistance to hemolysis when their erythrocytes were exposed to free radicals, with females also enduring higher oxidative damage in plasma lipids. Thus, higher color production would be linked to higher oxidative stress, supporting the biotransformation hypothesis. The recent discovery of an avian oxygenase enzyme involved in converting yellow to red carotenoids may support our results. Nonetheless, the effect could also depend on the abundance of specific substrate carotenoids in the diet. Birds fed with proportionally higher levels of zeaxanthin showed the reddest ornaments with the highest astaxanthin concentrations. Moreover, these birds tended to show the strongest diquat-mediated effect. Therefore, in the evolution of carotenoid-based sexual signals, a biotransformation cost derived from maintaining a well-adjusted redox machinery could coexist with a cost linked to carotenoid acquisition and allocation (i.e. a resource allocation trade-off).
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Affiliation(s)
- Esther García-de Blas
- Instituto de Investigación en Recursos Cinegéticos (IREC), CSIC-UCLM-JCCM , Ciudad Real , Spain
| | - Rafael Mateo
- Instituto de Investigación en Recursos Cinegéticos (IREC), CSIC-UCLM-JCCM , Ciudad Real , Spain
| | - Carlos Alonso-Alvarez
- Instituto de Investigación en Recursos Cinegéticos (IREC), CSIC-UCLM-JCCM, Ciudad Real, Spain; Ecología Evolituva, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (MNCN), Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Madrid, Spain
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Casagrande S, Pinxten R, Eens M. Honest Signaling and Oxidative Stress: The Special Case of Avian Acoustic Communication. Front Ecol Evol 2016. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2016.00052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
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57
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Schull Q, Viblanc VA, Stier A, Saadaoui H, Lefol E, Criscuolo F, Bize P, Robin JP. The oxidative debt of fasting: evidence for short to medium-term costs of advanced fasting in adult king penguins. J Exp Biol 2016; 219:3284-3293. [DOI: 10.1242/jeb.145250] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/27/2016] [Accepted: 08/08/2016] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
In response to prolonged periods of fasting, animals have evolved metabolic adaptations helping to mobilize body reserves and/or reducing metabolic rate, to ensure a longer usage of reserves. Those metabolic changes can however be associated with higher exposure to oxidative stress, raising the question how species that naturally fast during their life cycle avoid an accumulation of oxidative damage over time. King penguins repeatedly cope with fasting periods up to several weeks. Here we investigated how adult male penguins deal with oxidative stress after an experimentally induced moderate fasting period (PII) or an advanced fasting period (PIII). After fasting in captivity, birds were released to forage at sea. We measured plasmatic oxidative stress on the same individuals at the start and end of the fasting period and when they returned from foraging at sea. We found an increase in activity of the antioxidant enzyme superoxide dismutase along with fasting. However, PIII individuals showed higher oxidative damage at the end of the fast compared to PII individuals. When they returned from re-feeding at sea, all birds had recovered their initial body mass and exhibited low levels of oxidative damage. Notably, levels of oxidative damage after the foraging trip were correlated to the rate of mass gain at sea in PIII individuals but not in PII individuals. Altogether, our results suggest that fasting induces a transitory exposure to oxidative stress and that effort to recover in body mass after an advanced fasting period may be a neglected carry-over cost of fasting.
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Affiliation(s)
- Quentin Schull
- IPHC, UNISTRA, CNRS, 23 rue du Loess, 67200 Strasbourg, France
| | | | - Antoine Stier
- IPHC, UNISTRA, CNRS, 23 rue du Loess, 67200 Strasbourg, France
| | - Hédi Saadaoui
- IPHC, UNISTRA, CNRS, 23 rue du Loess, 67200 Strasbourg, France
| | - Emilie Lefol
- IPHC, UNISTRA, CNRS, 23 rue du Loess, 67200 Strasbourg, France
| | | | - Pierre Bize
- Institute of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Aberdeen, Scotland, UK
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