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Cayuela H, Lackey ACR, Ronget V, Monod-Broca B, Whiteman HH. Polyphenism predicts actuarial senescence and lifespan in tiger salamanders. J Anim Ecol 2024; 93:333-347. [PMID: 38279640 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.14048] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/09/2023] [Accepted: 12/08/2023] [Indexed: 01/28/2024]
Abstract
Actuarial senescence (called 'senescence' hereafter) often shows broad variation at the intraspecific level. Phenotypic plasticity likely plays a central role in among-individual heterogeneity in senescence rate (i.e. the rate of increase in mortality with age), although our knowledge on this subject is still very fragmentary. Polyphenism-the unique sub-type of phenotypic plasticity where several discrete phenotypes are produced by the same genotype-may provide excellent study systems to investigate if and how plasticity affects the rate of senescence in nature. In this study, we investigated whether facultative paedomorphosis influences the rate of senescence in a salamander, Ambystoma mavortium nebulosum. Facultative paedomorphosis, a unique form of polyphenism found in dozens of urodele species worldwide, leads to the production of two discrete, environmentally induced phenotypes: metamorphic and paedomorphic individuals. We leveraged an extensive set of capture-recapture data (8948 individuals, 24 years of monitoring) that were analysed using multistate capture-recapture models and Bayesian age-dependent survival models. Multistate models revealed that paedomorphosis was the most common developmental pathway used by salamanders in our study system. Bayesian age-dependent survival models then showed that paedomorphs have accelerated senescence in both sexes and shorter adult lifespan (in females only) compared to metamorphs. In paedomorphs, senescence rate and adult lifespan also varied among ponds and individuals. Females with good body condition and high lifetime reproductive success had slower senescence and longer lifespan. Late-breeding females also lived longer but showed a senescence rate similar to that of early-breeding females. Moreover, males with good condition had longer lifespan than males with poor body condition, although they had similar senescence rates. In addition, late-breeding males lived longer but, unexpectedly, had higher senescence than early-breeding males. Overall, our work provides one of the few empirical cases suggesting that environmentally cued polyphenism could affect the senescence of a vertebrate in nature, thus providing insights on the ecological and evolutionary consequences of developmental plasticity on ageing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hugo Cayuela
- Laboratoire de Biométrie et Biologie Evolutive, Université Lyon 1, CNRS, UMR 5558, Villeurbanne, France
| | - Alycia C R Lackey
- Department of Biology, University of Louisville, Louisville, Kentucky, USA
- Department of Biological Sciences and Watershed Studies Institute, Murray State University, Murray, Kentucky, USA
| | - Victor Ronget
- Institute of Organismic and Molecular Evolution, Johannes Gutenberg University, Mainz, Germany
| | - Benjamin Monod-Broca
- Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, CNRS, ENTPE, UMR5023 LEHNA, Villeurbanne, France
| | - Howard H Whiteman
- Department of Biological Sciences and Watershed Studies Institute, Murray State University, Murray, Kentucky, USA
- Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory, Gothic, Colorado, USA
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2
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Batabyal A. Predator-prey systems as models for integrative research in biology: the value of a non-consumptive effects framework. J Exp Biol 2023; 226:jeb245851. [PMID: 37772622 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.245851] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 09/30/2023]
Abstract
Predator-prey interactions are a cornerstone of many ecological and evolutionary processes that influence various levels of biological organization, from individuals to ecosystems. Predators play a crucial role in shaping ecosystems through the consumption of prey species and non-consumptive effects. Non-consumptive effects (NCEs) can induce changes in prey behavior, including altered foraging strategies, habitat selection, life history and anti-predator responses. These defensive strategies have physiological consequences for prey, affecting their growth, reproduction and immune function to name a few. Numerous experimental studies have incorporated NCEs in investigating predator-prey dynamics in the past decade. Interestingly, predator-prey systems can also be used as experimental models to answer physiology, cognition and adaptability questions. In this Commentary, I highlight research that uses NCEs in predator-prey systems to provide novel insights into cognition, adaptation, epigenetic inheritance and aging. I discuss the evolution of instinct, anxiety and other cognitive disorders, the shaping of brain connectomes, stress-induced aging and the development of behavioral coping styles. I outline how studies can integrate the investigation of NCEs with advanced behavioral, genomic and neurological tools to provide novel insights into physiological and cognitive health.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anuradha Batabyal
- Department of Physical and Natural Sciences, FLAME University, Pune 412115, India
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3
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Szlachcic E, Dańko MJ, Czarnoleski M. Rapamycin supplementation of Drosophila melanogaster larvae results in less viable adults with smaller cells. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2023; 10:230080. [PMID: 37351490 PMCID: PMC10282583 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.230080] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/23/2023] [Accepted: 05/30/2023] [Indexed: 06/24/2023]
Abstract
The intrinsic sources of mortality relate to the ability to meet the metabolic demands of tissue maintenance and repair, ultimately shaping ageing patterns. Anti-ageing mechanisms compete for resources with other functions, including those involved in maintaining functional plasma membranes. Consequently, organisms with smaller cells and more plasma membranes should devote more resources to membrane maintenance, leading to accelerated intrinsic mortality and ageing. To investigate this unexplored trade-off, we reared Drosophila melanogaster larvae on food with or without rapamycin (a TOR pathway inhibitor) to produce small- and large-celled adult flies, respectively, and measured their mortality rates. Males showed higher mortality than females. As expected, small-celled flies (rapamycin) showed higher mortality than their large-celled counterparts (control), but only in early adulthood. Contrary to predictions, the median lifespan was similar between the groups. Rapamycin administered to adults prolongs life; thus, the known direct physiological effects of rapamycin cannot explain our results. Instead, we invoke indirect effects of rapamycin, manifested as reduced cell size, as a driver of increased early mortality. We conclude that cell size differences between organisms and the associated burdens of plasma membrane maintenance costs may be important but overlooked factors influencing mortality patterns in nature.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ewa Szlachcic
- Life History Evolution Group, Institute of Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Jagiellonian University, Kraków, Poland
| | - Maciej J. Dańko
- Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany
| | - Marcin Czarnoleski
- Life History Evolution Group, Institute of Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Jagiellonian University, Kraków, Poland
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4
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Level-dependent effects of predation stress on prey development, lifespan and reproduction in mites. Biogerontology 2022; 23:515-527. [PMID: 35879518 PMCID: PMC9388410 DOI: 10.1007/s10522-022-09980-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/10/2022] [Accepted: 07/13/2022] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
In predator-prey interactions, non-consumptive effects of predators have been less studied than consumptive effects. However, non-consumptive effects may have significant influences on prey and can change different aspects of their life history such as development, reproduction and lifespan. The odour and other cues associated with a predator, without direct contact, could induce stress in prey, leading to phenotypic changes in life history traits. In this study, we investigate how mild and strong predator-induced stress could affect prey life history. The prey (Tyrophagus putrescentiae) was exposed, from hatching to death, to three different levels of predation stress from its predator (Neoseiulus cucumeris) (1, 3 or 5 predator adults in an adjacent cage separated by a mesh screen). Compared with the control, both males and females under predator-induced stress had longer developmental time and shorter lifespan when the level of predation stress increased, showing significant level-dependence. In addition, females had reduced fecundity under predation stress. Sex-specific response to predation stress was observed under a low level of predation stress: females had greater reduction in lifespan than males. Furthermore, the reduction in female lifespan was due more from the decrease in the post-oviposition period than the decrease in the oviposition period. Future studies applying even milder levels of predation press, such as exposure of prey to predator cues only during part of the prey lifespan, may provide additional insights.
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Godoy RS, Weber V, Lanés LEK, Reichard M, Gemelli T, Hohendorff RV, Maltchik L. Recognizing the enemy: do predator cues influence hatching in Neotropical annual killifish? JOURNAL OF FISH BIOLOGY 2021; 99:1476-1484. [PMID: 34287870 DOI: 10.1111/jfb.14856] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/05/2021] [Accepted: 07/14/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Annual fish species have evolved complex adaptations to survive in temporary wetlands. The main adaptation of these fish is the ability to produce embryos that survive dry periods. Embryo development of this fish can show variation at multiple levels influenced by many environmental factors, such as photoperiod and temperature. Predator cues are another factor that can influence the embryonic stage. One way in which annual fish could adapt to predators is by using risk-spreading strategies (through bet-hedging). Nonetheless, this strategy depends on the coevolutionary history between predators and preys and on the degree of environmental unpredictability, resulting in different responses across different species. This study investigated the influence of predator cues on the embryonic development and hatching of two Austrolebias species that inhabit ponds that present differences in hydroperiod and the risk of predator presence. The results confirmed a differentiated response between the two annual fish species tested, corroborating the modulation of hatching against the risk of predation by native predatory fish. The authors further showed that development times varied between the two annual fish species, regardless of the presence of predators. They highlight that the variation in embryonic development is strongly affected by different levels of hydroperiod unpredictability faced by the two species. To unravel finer-scale local adaptations in the annual fish embryo development, future studies should focus on a region with greater spatial gradient.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robson S Godoy
- Laboratory of Ecology and Conservation of Aquatic Ecosystems, UNISINOS University, São Leopoldo, Brazil
| | - Vinicius Weber
- Laboratory of Ecology and Conservation of Aquatic Ecosystems, UNISINOS University, São Leopoldo, Brazil
| | - Luis Esteban Krause Lanés
- Conservation Physiology Laboratory, Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul (PUCRS), Porto Alegre, Brazil
| | - Martin Reichard
- Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
- Institute of Botany and Zoology, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Tanise Gemelli
- Nutrition and Food, UNISINOS University, São Leopoldo, Brazil
| | | | - Leonardo Maltchik
- Postgraduate Program in Biology of Continental Aquatic Environments, Federal University of Rio Grande, FURG, Rio Grande, Brazil
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6
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Aging as a consequence of selection to reduce the environmental risk of dying. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2021; 118:2102088118. [PMID: 34031251 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2102088118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Each animal in the Darwinian theater is exposed to a number of abiotic and biotic risk factors causing mortality. Several of these risk factors are intimately associated with the act of energy acquisition as such and with the amount of reserve the organism has available from this acquisition for overcoming temporary distress. Because a considerable fraction of an individual's lifetime energy acquisition is spent on somatic maintenance, there is a close link between energy expenditure on somatic maintenance and mortality risk. Here, we show, by simple life-history theory reasoning backed up by empirical cohort survivorship data, how reduction of mortality risk might be achieved by restraining allocation to somatic maintenance, which enhances lifetime fitness but results in aging. Our results predict the ubiquitous presence of senescent individuals in a highly diverse group of natural animal populations, which may display constant, increasing, or decreasing mortality with age. This suggests that allocation to somatic maintenance is primarily tuned to expected life span by stabilizing selection and is not necessarily traded against reproductive effort or other traits. Due to this ubiquitous strategy of modulating the somatic maintenance budget so as to increase fitness under natural conditions, it follows that individuals kept in protected environments with very low environmental mortality risk will have their expected life span primarily defined by somatic damage accumulation mechanisms laid down by natural selection in the wild.
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7
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Pham HT, Dinh KV, Nguyen CC, Quoc LB. Changes in the Magnitude of the Individual and Combined Effects of Contaminants, Warming, and Predators on Tropical Cladocerans across 11 Generations. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2020; 54:15287-15295. [PMID: 33200939 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.0c05366] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/09/2023]
Abstract
A massive challenge in ecotoxicology is assessing how the interaction of contaminants, climate change, and biotic stressors shapes the structure and functions of natural populations. Furthermore, it is not known whether contemporary evolutionary responses to multiple stressors across multigenerations may alter the interaction of these stressors. To address these issues, we exposed Moina dubia to lead (Pb, 50 μg/L) under two temperatures (25 and 28 °C) with/without predator cues from climbing perch (Anabas testudineus) for 11 generations (F1-F11). We assessed changes in M. dubia fitness, including development time, adult size, lifespan, fecundity, and neonate production. We found strong negative effects of Pb, elevated temperature, and predator cues on the fitness of M. dubia. Strikingly, Pb-induced reduction in the performance of M. dubia was stronger at 25 °C and in the absence of predator cues. The individual and interactive effects of Pb, temperature, and predator cues on M. dubia were stronger across F1-F9 and generally leveled off in F10-F11. Our results highlight the high vulnerability of M. dubia to multiple stressors, thus weakening top-down control on algal blooms in eutrophic lakes. Our study underscores the importance of integrating evolutionary responses in realistic ecotoxicological risk assessments of contaminants interacting with climatic and biotic stressors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hong T Pham
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Thuyloi University, 175 Tay Son, Dong Da, Hanoi 116705, Vietnam
| | - Khuong V Dinh
- Cam Ranh Centre for Tropical Marine Research and Aquaculture, Institute of Aquaculture, Nha Trang University, No 2 Nguyen Dinh Chieu Street, Nha Trang 650000, Vietnam
- School of Biological Sciences, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington 99164, United States
| | - Cuong C Nguyen
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Thuyloi University, 175 Tay Son, Dong Da, Hanoi 116705, Vietnam
| | - Lap B Quoc
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Thuyloi University, 175 Tay Son, Dong Da, Hanoi 116705, Vietnam
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8
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Boonekamp JJ, Bauch C, Verhulst S. Experimentally increased brood size accelerates actuarial senescence and increases subsequent reproductive effort in a wild bird population. J Anim Ecol 2020; 89:1395-1407. [PMID: 32037534 PMCID: PMC7317873 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.13186] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2019] [Accepted: 01/17/2020] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
The assumption that reproductive effort decreases somatic state, accelerating ageing, is central to our understanding of life‐history variation. Maximal reproductive effort early in life is predicted to be maladaptive by accelerating ageing disproportionally, decreasing fitness. Optimality theory predicts that reproductive effort is restrained early in life to balance the fitness contribution of reproduction against the survival cost induced by the reproductive effort. When adaptive, the level of reproductive restraint is predicted to be inversely linked to the remaining life expectancy, potentially resulting in a terminal effort in the last period of reproduction. Experimental tests of the reproductive restraint hypothesis require manipulation of somatic state and subsequent investigation of reproductive effort and residual life span. To our knowledge the available evidence remains inconclusive, and hence reproductive restraint remains to be demonstrated. We modulated somatic state through a lifelong brood size manipulation in wild jackdaws and measured its consequences for age‐dependent mortality and reproductive success. The assumption that lifelong increased brood size reduced somatic state was supported: Birds rearing enlarged broods showed subsequent increased rate of actuarial senescence, resulting in reduced residual life span. The treatment induced a reproductive response in later seasons: Egg volume and nestling survival were higher in subsequent seasons in the increased versus reduced broods' treatment group. We detected these increases in egg volume and nestling survival despite the expectation that in the absence of a change in reproductive effort, the reduced somatic state indicated by the increased mortality rate would result in lower reproductive output. This leads us to conclude that the higher reproductive success we observed was the result of higher reproductive effort. Our findings show that reproductive effort negatively covaries with remaining life expectancy, supporting optimality theory and confirming reproductive restraint as a key factor underpinning life‐history variation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jelle J Boonekamp
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.,Centre for Ecology & Conservation, School of Biosciences, University of Exeter, Penryn, UK
| | - Christina Bauch
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Simon Verhulst
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
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9
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Pietrzak B, Rabus M, Religa M, Laforsch C, Dańko MJ. Phenotypic plasticity of senescence in Daphnia under predation impact: no ageing acceleration when the perceived risk decreases with age. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2020; 7:191382. [PMID: 32257312 PMCID: PMC7062089 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.191382] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/26/2019] [Accepted: 12/19/2019] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Recognising the nature of the predation risk, and responding to it accurately, is crucial to fitness. Yet, even the most accurate adaptive responses to predation risk usually entail costs, both immediate and lifelong. Rooting in life-history theory, we hypothesize that an animal can perceive the nuances of prey size and age selectivity by the predator and modulate its life history accordingly. We test the prediction that-contrary to the faster or earlier senescence under predation risk that increases with prey size and age-under predation risk that decreases with prey size and age either no senescence acceleration or even its deceleration is to be observed. We use two species of indeterminate growers, small crustaceans of the genus Daphnia, Daphnia Pulex and Daphnia magna, as the model prey, and their respective gape-limited invertebrate predators, a dipteran, midge larva Chaoborus flavicans, and a notostracan, tadpole shrimp Triops cancriformis. We analyse age-specific survival, mortality and fertility rates, and find no senescence acceleration, as predicted. With this study, we complete the picture of the expected non-consumptive phenotypic effects of perceived predation pressure of different age-dependence patterns.
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Affiliation(s)
- Barbara Pietrzak
- Department of Hydrobiology, Institute of Zoology, Faculty of Biology, Biological and Chemical Research Centre, University of Warsaw, Zwirki i Wigury 101, 02-089 Warszawa, Poland
| | - Max Rabus
- Animal Ecology I and BayCEER, University of Bayreuth, Universitaetsstraße 30, 95447 Bayreuth, Germany
| | - Maciej Religa
- Department of Hydrobiology, Institute of Zoology, Faculty of Biology, Biological and Chemical Research Centre, University of Warsaw, Zwirki i Wigury 101, 02-089 Warszawa, Poland
| | - Christian Laforsch
- Animal Ecology I and BayCEER, University of Bayreuth, Universitaetsstraße 30, 95447 Bayreuth, Germany
| | - Maciej J Dańko
- Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Konrad-Zuse-Straße 1, 18057 Rostock, Germany
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10
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Li GY, Zhang ZQ. Development, lifespan and reproduction of spider mites exposed to predator-induced stress across generations. Biogerontology 2019; 20:871-882. [DOI: 10.1007/s10522-019-09835-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/22/2019] [Accepted: 09/14/2019] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
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11
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Abstract
The demonstration of life span plasticity in natural populations would provide a powerful test of evolutionary theories of senescence. Plastic senescence is not easily explained by mutation accumulation or antagonistic pleiotropy but is a corollary of the disposable soma theory. The life span differences among castes of the eusocial Hymenoptera are potentially some of the most striking and extreme examples of life span plasticity. Although these differences are often assumed to be plastic, this has never been demonstrated conclusively because differences in life span may be caused by the proximate effects of different levels of environmental hazard experienced by castes. Here age-dependent and age-independent components of instantaneous mortality rates of the honey bee (Apis mellifera) were estimated from published life tables for natural and seminatural populations to determine whether differences in life span between queens and workers and between different types of workers are indeed plastic. These differences in life span were found to be due to differences in the rate of actuarial senescence, which correlate positively with the rate of extrinsic mortality, in accordance with the central prediction of evolutionary theories of senescence. Although all three evolutionary theories of senescence could in principle explain such plastic senescence, given differential gene expression between castes or life stages, only the disposable soma theory adequately explains the adaptive regulation of somatic maintenance in response to different environmental conditions that appears to underlie life span plasticity.
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Dańko MJ, Burger O, Argasiński K, Kozłowski J. Extrinsic Mortality Can Shape Life-History Traits, Including Senescence. Evol Biol 2018; 45:395-404. [PMID: 30459480 PMCID: PMC6223763 DOI: 10.1007/s11692-018-9458-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2018] [Accepted: 06/07/2018] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
The Williams' hypothesis is one of the most widely known ideas in life history evolution. It states that higher adult mortality should lead to faster and/or earlier senescence. Theoretically derived gradients, however, do not support this prediction. Increased awareness of this fact has caused a crisis of misinformation among theorists and empirical ecologists. We resolve this crisis by outlining key issues in the measurement of fitness, assumptions of density dependence, and their effect on extrinsic mortality. The classic gradients apply only to a narrow range of ecological contexts where density-dependence is either absent or present but with unrealistic stipulations. Re-deriving the classic gradients, using a more appropriate measure of fitness and incorporating density, shows that broad ecological contexts exist where Williams' hypothesis is supported.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maciej J Dańko
- 1Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany
| | - Oskar Burger
- 1Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany
| | | | - Jan Kozłowski
- 3Institute of Environmental Sciences, Jagiellonian University, Krakow, Poland
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Dańko A, Schaible R, Pijanowska J, Dańko MJ. Population density shapes patterns of survival and reproduction in Eleutheria dichotoma (Hydrozoa: Anthoathecata). MARINE BIOLOGY 2018; 165:48. [PMID: 29497211 PMCID: PMC5816771 DOI: 10.1007/s00227-018-3309-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/24/2017] [Accepted: 02/06/2018] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
Budding hydromedusae have high reproductive rates due to asexual reproduction and can occur in high population densities along the coasts, specifically in tidal pools. In laboratory experiments, we investigated the effects of population density on the survival and reproductive strategies of a single clone of Eleutheria dichotoma. We found that sexual reproduction occurs with the highest rate at medium population densities. Increased sexual reproduction was associated with lower budding (asexual reproduction) and survival probability. Sexual reproduction results in the production of motile larvae that can, in contrast to medusae, seek to escape unfavorable conditions by actively looking for better environments. The successful settlement of a larva results in starting the polyp stage, which is probably more resistant to environmental conditions. This is the first study that has examined the life-history strategies of the budding hydromedusa E. dichotoma by conducting a long-term experiment with a relatively large sample size that allowed for the examination of age-specific mortality and reproductive rates. We found that most sexual and asexual reproduction occurred at the beginning of life following a very rapid process of maturation. The parametric models fitted to the mortality data showed that population density was associated with an increase in the rate of aging, an increase in the level of late-life mortality plateau, and a decrease in the hidden heterogeneity in individual mortality rates. The effects of population density on life-history traits are discussed in the context of resource allocation and the r/K-strategies' continuum concept.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aleksandra Dańko
- Laboratory of Evolutionary Biodemography, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Konrad-Zuse-Strasse 1, 18057 Rostock, Germany
| | - Ralf Schaible
- Laboratory of Evolutionary Biodemography, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Konrad-Zuse-Strasse 1, 18057 Rostock, Germany
| | - Joanna Pijanowska
- Department of Hydrobiology, University of Warsaw, Żwirki i Wigury 101, 02-089 Warsaw, Poland
| | - Maciej J. Dańko
- Laboratory of Evolutionary Biodemography, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Konrad-Zuse-Strasse 1, 18057 Rostock, Germany
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14
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Dańko MJ, Burger O, Kozłowski J. Density-dependence interacts with extrinsic mortality in shaping life histories. PLoS One 2017; 12:e0186661. [PMID: 29049399 PMCID: PMC5648222 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0186661] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/18/2017] [Accepted: 10/05/2017] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
The role of extrinsic mortality in shaping life histories is poorly understood. However, substantial evidence suggests that extrinsic mortality interacts with density-dependence in crucial ways. We develop a model combining Evolutionarily Stable Strategies with a projection matrix that allows resource allocation to growth, tissue repairs, and reproduction. Our model examines three cases, with density-dependence acting on: (i) mortality, (ii) fecundity, and (iii) production rate. We demonstrate that density-independent extrinsic mortality influences the rate of aging, age at maturity, growth rate, and adult size provided that density-dependence acts on fertility or juvenile mortality. However, density-independent extrinsic mortality has no effect on these life history traits when density-dependence acts on survival. We show that extrinsic mortality interacts with density-dependence via a compensation mechanism: the higher the extrinsic mortality the lower the strength of density-dependence. However, this compensation fully offsets the effect of extrinsic mortality only if density-dependence acts on survival independently of age. Both the age-pattern and the type of density-dependence are crucial for shaping life history traits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maciej Jan Dańko
- Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany
- * E-mail:
| | - Oskar Burger
- Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany
| | - Jan Kozłowski
- Jagiellonian University, Institute of Environmental Sciences, Kraków, Poland
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15
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Polačik M, Janáč M. Costly defense in a fluctuating environment-sensitivity of annual Nothobranchius fishes to predator kairomones. Ecol Evol 2017; 7:4289-4298. [PMID: 28649341 PMCID: PMC5478047 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.3019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2016] [Revised: 02/22/2017] [Accepted: 04/01/2017] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Antipredator strategies increase the chances of survival of prey species but are subject to trade-offs and always come at a cost, one specific category being the "missed opportunity." Some animals that can modulate the timing of life-cycle events can also desynchronize this timing with the occurrence of a predator. In an unpredictable environment, such a modification may result in a mismatch with prevailing conditions, consequently leading to reproductive failure. In eastern Africa, temporary pools existing only during the rainy season are inhabited by annual fish of the genus Nothobranchius. We examined (i) the capability of multiple Nothobranchius populations and species to cease hatching when exposed to chemical cues from native fish predators and adult conspecifics and (ii) the ability of N. furzeri to modulate their growth rate in the presence of a gape-limited fish predator. As the tested Nothobranchius spp. originate from regions with extreme environmental fluctuations where the cost of a missed opportunity can be serious, we predicted an inability to cease hatching as well as lack of growth acceleration as both the predator's gape limitation and the environment select for the same adaptation. Our results showed no biologically relevant influence of kairomone on hatching and no influence on growth rate. This suggests that, in an unpredictable environment, the costs of a missed opportunity are substantial enough to prevent the evolution of some antipredator defense strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Michal Janáč
- Institute of Vertebrate BiologyBrnoCzech Republic
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Latitudinal and age-specific patterns of larval mortality in the damselfly Lestes sponsa: Senescence before maturity? Exp Gerontol 2017; 95:107-115. [PMID: 28502774 DOI: 10.1016/j.exger.2017.05.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/05/2016] [Revised: 04/27/2017] [Accepted: 05/09/2017] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Latitudinal differences in life history traits driven by differences in seasonal time constraints have been widely documented. Yet, latitudinal patterns in (age-specific) mortality rates have been poorly studied. Here, we studied latitudinal differences in pre-adult age-specific mortality patterns in the strictly univoltine damselfly Lestes sponsa. We compared individuals from three latitudes reared from the egg stage in the laboratory at temperatures and photoperiods simulating those at the latitude of origin (main experiment) and under common-garden conditions at a fixed temperature and photoperiod (supplementary experiment). Results from the main experiment showed that the high-latitude population exhibited higher mortality rates than the central and southern populations, likely reflecting a cost of their faster development. Age-specific mortality patterns, also indicated higher ageing rates in the high-latitude compared to the low-latitude population, which likely had a genetic basis. The strong within-population variation in hatching dates in the low-latitude population caused variation in mortality rates; individuals that hatched later showed higher mortality rates presumably due to their shorter development times compared to larvae that hatched earlier. In both experiments, larvae from all three latitudes showed accelerated mortality rates with age, which is consistent with a pattern of senescence before adulthood.
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17
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Lenart P, Bienertová-Vašků J. Keeping up with the Red Queen: the pace of aging as an adaptation. Biogerontology 2016; 18:693-709. [PMID: 28013399 DOI: 10.1007/s10522-016-9674-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2016] [Accepted: 12/19/2016] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
For decades, a vast majority of biogerontologists assumed that aging is not and cannot be an adaptation. In recent years, however, several authors opposed this predominant view and repeatedly suggested that not only is aging an adaptation but that it is the result of a specific aging program. This issue almost instantaneously became somewhat controversial and many important authors produced substantial works refuting the notion of the aging program. In this article we review the current state of the debate and list the most important arguments proposed by both sides. Furthermore, although classical interpretations of the evolution of aging are in sharp contrast with the idea of programmed aging, we suggest that the truth might in fact very well lie somewhere in between. We also propose our own interpretation which states that although aging is in essence inevitable and results from damage accumulation rather than from a specific program, the actual rate of aging in nature may still be adaptive to some extent.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peter Lenart
- Department of Pathological Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University, Kamenice 5, Building A18, 625 00, Brno, Czech Republic.
| | - Julie Bienertová-Vašků
- Department of Pathological Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University, Kamenice 5, Building A18, 625 00, Brno, Czech Republic.,Research Centre for Toxic Compounds in the Environment, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Kamenice 5, Building A29, 625 00, Brno, Czech Republic
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18
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Auld JR, Helker AD, Kolpas A. Consequences of mating and predation risk for longevity in a freshwater snail: abstinence makes the heart beat longer. J Evol Biol 2016; 29:2539-2544. [PMID: 27591368 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.12976] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/25/2015] [Revised: 08/04/2016] [Accepted: 08/28/2016] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- J. R. Auld
- Department of Biology West Chester University West Chester PA USA
| | - A. D. Helker
- Department of Mathematics West Chester University West Chester PA USA
| | - A. Kolpas
- Department of Mathematics West Chester University West Chester PA USA
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Boonekamp JJ, Briga M, Verhulst S. The heuristic value of redundancy models of aging. Exp Gerontol 2015; 71:95-102. [PMID: 26362219 DOI: 10.1016/j.exger.2015.09.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2015] [Revised: 09/03/2015] [Accepted: 09/04/2015] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
Molecular studies of aging aim to unravel the cause(s) of aging bottom-up, but linking these mechanisms to organismal level processes remains a challenge. We propose that complementary top-down data-directed modelling of organismal level empirical findings may contribute to developing these links. To this end, we explore the heuristic value of redundancy models of aging to develop a deeper insight into the mechanisms causing variation in senescence and lifespan. We start by showing (i) how different redundancy model parameters affect projected aging and mortality, and (ii) how variation in redundancy model parameters relates to variation in parameters of the Gompertz equation. Lifestyle changes or medical interventions during life can modify mortality rate, and we investigate (iii) how interventions that change specific redundancy parameters within the model affect subsequent mortality and actuarial senescence. Lastly, as an example of data-directed modelling and the insights that can be gained from this, (iv) we fit a redundancy model to mortality patterns observed by Mair et al. (2003; Science 301: 1731-1733) in Drosophila that were subjected to dietary restriction and temperature manipulations. Mair et al. found that dietary restriction instantaneously reduced mortality rate without affecting aging, while temperature manipulations had more transient effects on mortality rate and did affect aging. We show that after adjusting model parameters the redundancy model describes both effects well, and a comparison of the parameter values yields a deeper insight in the mechanisms causing these contrasting effects. We see replacement of the redundancy model parameters by more detailed sub-models of these parameters as a next step in linking demographic patterns to underlying molecular mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jelle J Boonekamp
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences University of Groningen P.O. Box 11103, 9700CC Groningen, The Netherlands.
| | - Michael Briga
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences University of Groningen P.O. Box 11103, 9700CC Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Simon Verhulst
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences University of Groningen P.O. Box 11103, 9700CC Groningen, The Netherlands.
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