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Foquet B, Rapkin J, Sharma MD, Sadd BM, Sakaluk SK, Hunt J. Transcriptomic responses of females to consumption of nuptial food gifts as a potential mediator of sexual conflict in decorated crickets. J Evol Biol 2023; 36:183-194. [PMID: 36357978 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.14114] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/08/2022] [Revised: 08/16/2022] [Accepted: 09/02/2022] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
Abstract
Nuptial food gift provisioning by males to females at mating is a strategy in many insects that is thought to be shaped by sexual conflict or sexual selection, as it affords males access to a female's physiology. While males often attempt to use these gifts to influence female behaviour to their own advantage, females can evolve counter mechanisms. In decorated crickets, the male's nuptial gift comprises part of the spermatophore, the spermatophylax, the feeding on which deters the female from prematurely terminating sperm transfer. However, ingested compounds in the spermatophylax and attachment of the sperm-containing ampulla could further influence female physiology and behaviour. We investigated how mating per se and these two distinct routes of potential male-mediated manipulation influence the female transcriptomic response. We conducted an RNA sequencing experiment on gut and head tissues from females for whom nuptial food gift consumption and receipt of an ejaculation were independently manipulated. In the gut tissue, we found that females not permitted to feed during mating exhibited decreased overall gene expression, possibly caused by a reduced gut function, but this was countered by feeding on the spermatophylax or a sham gift. In the head tissue, we found only low numbers of differentially expressed genes, but a gene co-expression network analysis revealed that ampulla attachment and spermatophylax consumption independently induce distinct gene expression patterns. This study provides evidence that spermatophylax feeding alters the female post-mating transcriptomic response in decorated crickets, highlighting its potential to mediate sexual conflict in this system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bert Foquet
- Behavior, Ecology, Evolution & Systematics Section, School of Biological Sciences, Illinois State University, Normal, Illinois, USA
| | - James Rapkin
- Center for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Cornwall, UK
| | - Manmohan D Sharma
- Center for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Cornwall, UK
| | - Ben M Sadd
- Behavior, Ecology, Evolution & Systematics Section, School of Biological Sciences, Illinois State University, Normal, Illinois, USA
| | - Scott K Sakaluk
- Behavior, Ecology, Evolution & Systematics Section, School of Biological Sciences, Illinois State University, Normal, Illinois, USA
| | - John Hunt
- Center for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Cornwall, UK.,School of Science, Western Sydney University, Richmond, New South Wales, Australia
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Kahn PC, Cao DD, Burns M, Boyer SL. Nuptial gift chemistry reveals convergent evolution correlated with antagonism in mating systems of harvestmen (Arachnida, Opiliones). Ecol Evol 2018; 8:7103-7110. [PMID: 30214716 PMCID: PMC6131725 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.4232] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/28/2018] [Revised: 04/23/2018] [Accepted: 04/24/2018] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Nuptial gifts are material donations given from male to female before or during copulation and are subject to sexual selection in a wide variety of taxa. The harvestman genus Leiobunum has emerged as a model system for understanding the evolution of reproductive morphology and behavior, as transitions between solicitous and antagonistic modes of courtship have occurred multiple times within the lineage and are correlated with convergence in genital morphology. We analyzed the free amino acid content of nuptial gift secretions from five species of Leiobunum using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Multivariate analysis of the free amino acid profiles revealed that, rather than clustering based on phylogenetic relationships, nuptial gift chemical composition was better predicted by genital morphology and behavior, suggesting that convergent evolution has acted on the chemical composition of the nuptial gift. In addition, we found that, species with solicitous courtship produce gifts consisting of a 19% larger proportion of essential amino acids as compared to those with more antagonistic courtship interactions. This work represents the first comparative study of nuptial gift chemistry within a phylogenetic framework in any animal group and as such contributes to our understanding of the evolution of reproductive diversity and the participant role of nuptial gift chemistry in mating system transitions.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Dennis D. Cao
- Chemistry DepartmentMacalester CollegeSt. PaulMinnesota
| | - Mercedes Burns
- Biology DepartmentSan Diego State UniversitySan DiegoCalifornia
- Present address:
Department of Biological SciencesUniversity of MarylandBaltimore CountyBaltimoreMaryland
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Jarrige A, Body M, Giron D, Greenfield MD, Goubault M. Amino acid composition of the bushcricket spermatophore and the function of courtship feeding: Variable composition suggests a dynamic role of the nuptial gift. Physiol Behav 2015; 151:463-8. [DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2015.08.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/07/2015] [Revised: 08/03/2015] [Accepted: 08/04/2015] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
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Pauchet Y, Wielsch N, Wilkinson PA, Sakaluk SK, Svatoš A, ffrench-Constant RH, Hunt J, Heckel DG. What's in the Gift? Towards a Molecular Dissection of Nuptial Feeding in a Cricket. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0140191. [PMID: 26439494 PMCID: PMC4595131 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0140191] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2015] [Accepted: 09/22/2015] [Indexed: 01/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Nuptial gifts produced by males and transferred to females during copulation are common in insects. Yet, their precise composition and subsequent physiological effects on the female recipient remain unresolved. Male decorated crickets Gryllodes sigillatus transfer a spermatophore to the female during copulation that is composed of an edible gift, the spermatophylax, and the ampulla that contains the ejaculate. After transfer of the spermatophore, the female detaches the spermatophylax and starts to eat it while sperm from the ampulla are evacuated into the female reproductive tract. When the female has finished consuming the spermatophylax, she detaches the ampulla and terminates sperm transfer. Hence, one simple function of the spermatophylax is to ensure complete sperm transfer by distracting the female from prematurely removing the ampulla. However, the majority of orally active components of the spermatophylax itself and their subsequent effects on female behavior have not been identified. Here, we report the first analysis of the proteome of the G. sigillatus spermatophylax and the transcriptome of the male accessory glands that make these proteins. The accessory gland transcriptome was assembled into 17,691 transcripts whilst about 30 proteins were detected within the mature spermatophylax itself. Of these 30 proteins, 18 were encoded by accessory gland encoded messages. Most spermatophylax proteins show no similarity to proteins with known biological functions and are therefore largely novel. A spermatophylax protein shows similarity to protease inhibitors suggesting that it may protect the biologically active components from digestion within the gut of the female recipient. Another protein shares similarity with previously characterized insect polypeptide growth factors suggesting that it may play a role in altering female reproductive physiology concurrent with fertilization. Characterization of the spermatophylax proteome provides the first step in identifying the genes encoding these proteins in males and in understanding their biological functions in the female recipient.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yannick Pauchet
- Entomology, Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology, Jena, Germany
- * E-mail:
| | - Natalie Wielsch
- Mass spectrometry, Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology, Jena, Germany
| | - Paul A. Wilkinson
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn, United Kingdom
| | - Scott K. Sakaluk
- Behavior, Ecology, Evolution & Systematics Section, School of Biological Sciences, Illinois State University, Normal, IL, United States of America
| | - Aleš Svatoš
- Mass spectrometry, Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology, Jena, Germany
| | - Richard H. ffrench-Constant
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn, United Kingdom
| | - John Hunt
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn, United Kingdom
| | - David G. Heckel
- Entomology, Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology, Jena, Germany
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Gershman SN, Hunt J, Sakaluk SK. Food fight: sexual conflict over free amino acids in the nuptial gifts of male decorated crickets. J Evol Biol 2013; 26:693-704. [PMID: 23517466 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.12078] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2012] [Revised: 11/20/2012] [Accepted: 11/20/2012] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Abstract
In decorated crickets, Gryllodes sigillatus, the spermatophore that a male transfers at mating includes a gelatinous spermatophylax that the female consumes, delaying her removal of the sperm-filled ampulla. Male fertilization success increases with the length of time females spend feeding on the spermatophylax, while females may benefit by prematurely discarding the spermatophylaxes of undesirable males. This sexual conflict should favour males that produce increasingly appealing spermatophylaxes, and females that resist this manipulation. To determine the genetic basis of female spermatophylax feeding behaviour, we fed spermatophylaxes to females of nine inbred lines and found that female genotype had a major influence on spermatophylax feeding duration. The amino acid composition of the spermatophylax was also significantly heritable. There was a positive genetic correlation between spermatophylax feeding duration and the gustatory appeal of the spermatophylax. This correlation suggests that genes expressed in males that produce more manipulative spermatophylaxes are positively linked to genes expressed in females that make them more vulnerable to manipulation. Outbred females spent less time feeding on spermatophylaxes than inbred females, and thus showed greater resistance to male manipulation. Further, in a nonspermatophylax producing cricket (Acheta domesticus), females were significantly more prone to feeding on spermatophylaxes than outbred female Gryllodes. Collectively, these results suggest a history of sexually antagonistic coevolution over the consumption of nuptial food gifts.
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Affiliation(s)
- S N Gershman
- Behavior, Ecology, Evolution & Systematics Section, School of Biological Sciences, Illinois State University, Normal, IL, USA
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