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Yahong Z, Lingping S, Jing Z, Huixia L, Lingli W, Qian Z. Plasticity in moth mating behavior and ejaculate proteomic diversity induced by male competition. JOURNAL OF INSECT PHYSIOLOGY 2024; 156:104673. [PMID: 38977260 DOI: 10.1016/j.jinsphys.2024.104673] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/04/2024] [Revised: 07/05/2024] [Accepted: 07/05/2024] [Indexed: 07/10/2024]
Abstract
In male competition, large and costly ejaculates are advantageous. Prior research on male accessory gland secretions in Plutella xylostella left open questions about how males modulate their mating behaviors and ejaculate composition allocation in response to varying levels of competition. The current study aimed to delve deeper into these unexplored facets. A totally of 928 ejaculate proteins were identified across males exposed to different competition conditions. Notably, males courting under non-, low-, and high-competition scenarios exhibited 867, 635, and 858 ejaculate proteins, respectively. Approximately 10% of these ejaculate proteins displayed variations that aligned with changes in competition intensity. Subsequent analyses focused on the proteins transferred to females, revealing that 44% of ejaculate proteins were transferred, with 37 proteins exhibiting differential expression. Functional analyses uncovered their crucial roles in sperm maturation, motility, and capacitation. Our findings reveal adaptive adjustments in ejaculate protein abundance and transmission in P. xylostella as a response to varying competition levels. Moreover, fluorescent sperm labeling indicated higher sperm transfer during low competition correlated with shorter sperm length. Furthermore, evidence suggests that males shorten their courtship duration and extend their mating duration when faced with competition. These results illustrate how competition drives ejaculate investment and behavioral plasticity, offering valuable insights for advancements in assisted reproductive technologies and pest management strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zheng Yahong
- State Key Laboratory for Ecological Pest Control of Fujian/Taiwan Crops and College of Life Science, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, 350002, China
| | - Shi Lingping
- Ministerial and Provincial Joint Innovation Centre for Safety Production of Cross-Strait Crops, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou 350002, China
| | - Zhang Jing
- Ministerial and Provincial Joint Innovation Centre for Safety Production of Cross-Strait Crops, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou 350002, China
| | - Li Huixia
- State Key Laboratory for Ecological Pest Control of Fujian/Taiwan Crops and College of Life Science, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, 350002, China
| | - Wu Lingli
- Ministerial and Provincial Joint Innovation Centre for Safety Production of Cross-Strait Crops, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou 350002, China
| | - Zhao Qian
- State Key Laboratory for Ecological Pest Control of Fujian/Taiwan Crops and College of Life Science, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, 350002, China; Ministerial and Provincial Joint Innovation Centre for Safety Production of Cross-Strait Crops, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou 350002, China.
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Su Q, Xu B, Chen X, Rokita SE. Misregulation of bromotyrosine compromises fertility in male Drosophila. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2024; 121:e2322501121. [PMID: 38748578 PMCID: PMC11126969 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2322501121] [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: 01/02/2024] [Accepted: 04/15/2024] [Indexed: 05/27/2024] Open
Abstract
Biological regulation often depends on reversible reactions such as phosphorylation, acylation, methylation, and glycosylation, but rarely halogenation. A notable exception is the iodination and deiodination of thyroid hormones. Here, we report detection of bromotyrosine and its subsequent debromination during Drosophila spermatogenesis. Bromotyrosine is not evident when Drosophila express a native flavin-dependent dehalogenase that is homologous to the enzyme responsible for iodide salvage from iodotyrosine in mammals. Deletion or suppression of the dehalogenase-encoding condet (cdt) gene in Drosophila allows bromotyrosine to accumulate with no detectable chloro- or iodotyrosine. The presence of bromotyrosine in the cdt mutant males disrupts sperm individualization and results in decreased fertility. Transgenic expression of the cdt gene in late-staged germ cells rescues this defect and enhances tolerance of male flies to bromotyrosine. These results are consistent with reversible halogenation affecting Drosophila spermatogenesis in a process that had previously eluded metabolomic, proteomic, and genomic analyses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qi Su
- Department of Chemistry, The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD21218
| | - Bing Xu
- Department of Chemistry, The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD21218
| | - Xin Chen
- HHMI, The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD21218
- Department of Biology, The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD21218
| | - Steven E. Rokita
- Department of Chemistry, The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD21218
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Khan S, Mishra RK. Multigenerational Effect of Heat Stress on the Drosophila melanogaster Sperm Proteome. J Proteome Res 2024. [PMID: 38743012 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jproteome.4c00205] [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: 05/16/2024]
Abstract
The effect of the parental environment on offspring through non-DNA sequence-based mechanisms, such as DNA methylation, chromatin modifications, noncoding RNAs, and proteins, could only be established after the conception of "epigenetics". These effects are now broadly referred to as multigenerational epigenetic effects. Despite accumulating evidence of male gamete-mediated multigenerational epigenetic inheritance, little is known about the factors that underlie heat stress-induced multigenerational epigenetic inheritance via the male germline in Drosophila. In this study, we address this gap by utilizing an established heat stress paradigm in Drosophila and investigating its multigenerational effect on the sperm proteome. Our findings indicate that multigenerational heat stress during the early embryonic stage significantly influences proteins in the sperm associated with translation, chromatin organization, microtubule-based processes, and the generation of metabolites and energy. Assessment of life-history traits revealed that reproductive fitness and stress tolerance remained unaffected by multigenerational heat stress. Our study offers initial insights into the chromatin-based epigenetic mechanisms as a plausible means of transmitting heat stress memory through the male germline in Drosophila. Furthermore, it sheds light on the repercussions of early embryonic heat stress on male reproductive potential. The data sets from this study are available at the ProteomeXchange Consortium under the identifier PXD037488.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shagufta Khan
- CSIR - Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, Hyderabad-500 007, Telangana, India
| | - Rakesh K Mishra
- CSIR - Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, Hyderabad-500 007, Telangana, India
- Tata Institute for Genetics and Society, Bengaluru-560 065, Karnataka, India
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Gomez RA, Dallai R, Sims-West DJ, Mercati D, Sinka R, Ahmed-Braimah Y, Pitnick S, Dorus S. Proteomic diversification of spermatostyles among six species of whirligig beetles. Mol Reprod Dev 2024; 91:e23745. [PMID: 38785179 PMCID: PMC11246569 DOI: 10.1002/mrd.23745] [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: 02/08/2024] [Revised: 04/16/2024] [Accepted: 04/27/2024] [Indexed: 05/25/2024]
Abstract
Seminal fluid protein composition is complex and commonly assumed to be rapidly divergent due to functional interactions with both sperm and the female reproductive tract (FRT), both of which evolve rapidly. In addition to sperm, seminal fluid may contain structures, such as mating plugs and spermatophores. Here, we investigate the evolutionary diversification of a lesser-known ejaculate structure: the spermatostyle, which has independently arisen in several families of beetles and true bugs. We characterized the spermatostyle proteome, in addition to spermatostyle and FRT morphology, in six species of whirligig beetles (family Gyrinidae). Spermatostyles were enriched for proteolytic enzymes, and assays confirmed they possess proteolytic activity. Sperm-leucylaminopeptidases (S-LAPs) were particularly abundant, and their localization to spermatostyles was confirmed by immunohistochemistry. Although there was evidence for functional conservation of spermatostyle proteomes across species, phylogenetic regressions suggest evolutionary covariation between protein composition and the morphology of both spermatostyles and FRTs. We postulate that S-LAPs (and other proteases) have evolved a novel structural role in spermatostyles and discuss spermatostyles as adaptations for delivering male-derived materials to females.
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Affiliation(s)
- R. Antonio Gomez
- Department of Biology, Center for Reproductive Evolution, Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York, USA
| | - Romano Dallai
- Department of Life Sciences, University of Siena, Siena, Italy
| | - Dylan J. Sims-West
- Department of Biology, Center for Reproductive Evolution, Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York, USA
| | - David Mercati
- Department of Life Sciences, University of Siena, Siena, Italy
| | - Rita Sinka
- Department of Genetics, University of Szeged, Szeged, Hungary
| | - Yasir Ahmed-Braimah
- Department of Biology, Center for Reproductive Evolution, Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York, USA
| | - Scott Pitnick
- Department of Biology, Center for Reproductive Evolution, Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York, USA
| | - Steve Dorus
- Department of Biology, Center for Reproductive Evolution, Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York, USA
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Hafezi Y, Omurzakov A, Carlisle JA, Caldas IV, Wolfner MF, Clark AG. The Drosophila melanogaster Y-linked gene, WDY, is required for sperm to swim in the female reproductive tract. Commun Biol 2024; 7:90. [PMID: 38216628 PMCID: PMC10786823 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-023-05717-x] [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: 03/20/2023] [Accepted: 12/18/2023] [Indexed: 01/14/2024] Open
Abstract
Unique patterns of inheritance and selection on Y chromosomes have led to the evolution of specialized gene functions. We report CRISPR mutants in Drosophila of the Y-linked gene, WDY, which is required for male fertility. We demonstrate that the sperm tails of WDY mutants beat approximately half as fast as those of wild-type and that mutant sperm do not propel themselves within the male ejaculatory duct or female reproductive tract. Therefore, although mature sperm are produced by WDY mutant males, and are transferred to females, those sperm fail to enter the female sperm storage organs. We report genotype-dependent and regional differences in sperm motility that appear to break the correlation between sperm tail beating and propulsion. Furthermore, we identify a significant change in hydrophobicity at a residue at a putative calcium-binding site in WDY orthologs at the split between the melanogaster and obscura species groups, when WDY first became Y-linked. This suggests that a major functional change in WDY coincided with its appearance on the Y chromosome. Finally, we show that mutants for another Y-linked gene, PRY, also show a sperm storage defect that may explain their subfertility. Overall, we provide direct evidence for the long-held presumption that protein-coding genes on the Drosophila Y regulate sperm motility.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yassi Hafezi
- Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 14850, USA.
| | - Arsen Omurzakov
- Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 14850, USA
| | - Jolie A Carlisle
- Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 14850, USA
| | - Ian V Caldas
- Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 14850, USA
| | - Mariana F Wolfner
- Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 14850, USA
| | - Andrew G Clark
- Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 14850, USA.
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Grahn E, Kaufmann SV, Askarova M, Ninov M, Welp LM, Berger TK, Urlaub H, Kaupp UB. Control of intracellular pH and bicarbonate by CO 2 diffusion into human sperm. Nat Commun 2023; 14:5395. [PMID: 37669933 PMCID: PMC10480191 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-40855-0] [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: 11/10/2020] [Accepted: 08/14/2023] [Indexed: 09/07/2023] Open
Abstract
The reaction of CO2 with H2O to form bicarbonate (HCO3-) and H+ controls sperm motility and fertilization via HCO3--stimulated cAMP synthesis. A complex network of signaling proteins participates in this reaction. Here, we identify key players that regulate intracellular pH (pHi) and HCO3- in human sperm by quantitative mass spectrometry (MS) and kinetic patch-clamp fluorometry. The resting pHi is set by amiloride-sensitive Na+/H+ exchange. The sperm-specific putative Na+/H+ exchanger SLC9C1, unlike its sea urchin homologue, is not gated by voltage or cAMP. Transporters and channels implied in HCO3- transport are not detected, and may be present at copy numbers < 10 molecules/sperm cell. Instead, HCO3- is produced by diffusion of CO2 into cells and readjustment of the CO2/HCO3-/H+ equilibrium. The proton channel Hv1 may serve as a unidirectional valve that blunts the acidification ensuing from HCO3- synthesis. This work provides a new framework for the study of male infertility.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elena Grahn
- Max Planck Institute for Neurobiology of Behavior-caesar, Molecular Sensory Systems, Ludwig-Erhard-Allee 2, 53175, Bonn, Germany
| | - Svenja V Kaufmann
- Max Planck Institute for Multidisciplinary Sciences, Bioanalytical Mass Spectrometry, Am Fassberg 11, 37077, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Malika Askarova
- Max Planck Institute for Neurobiology of Behavior-caesar, Molecular Sensory Systems, Ludwig-Erhard-Allee 2, 53175, Bonn, Germany
| | - Momchil Ninov
- Max Planck Institute for Multidisciplinary Sciences, Bioanalytical Mass Spectrometry, Am Fassberg 11, 37077, Göttingen, Germany
- University Medical Center Göttingen, Institute of Clinical Chemistry, Bioanalytics, Robert-Koch-Strasse 40, 37075, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Luisa M Welp
- Max Planck Institute for Multidisciplinary Sciences, Bioanalytical Mass Spectrometry, Am Fassberg 11, 37077, Göttingen, Germany
- University Medical Center Göttingen, Institute of Clinical Chemistry, Bioanalytics, Robert-Koch-Strasse 40, 37075, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Thomas K Berger
- Max Planck Institute for Neurobiology of Behavior-caesar, Molecular Sensory Systems, Ludwig-Erhard-Allee 2, 53175, Bonn, Germany.
- Department of Neurophysiology, Institute of Physiology and Pathophysiology, Philipps-University Marburg, Deutschhausstrasse 1-2, 35037, Marburg, Germany.
| | - Henning Urlaub
- Max Planck Institute for Multidisciplinary Sciences, Bioanalytical Mass Spectrometry, Am Fassberg 11, 37077, Göttingen, Germany.
- University Medical Center Göttingen, Institute of Clinical Chemistry, Bioanalytics, Robert-Koch-Strasse 40, 37075, Göttingen, Germany.
- Cluster of Excellence, Multiscale Bioimaging: from Molecular Machines to Networks of Excitable Cells (MBExC), University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany.
| | - U Benjamin Kaupp
- Max Planck Institute for Neurobiology of Behavior-caesar, Molecular Sensory Systems, Ludwig-Erhard-Allee 2, 53175, Bonn, Germany.
- Life & Medical Sciences Institute (LIMES), University Bonn, Carl-Troll-Strasse 31, 53115, Bonn, Germany.
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Garlovsky MD, Ahmed-Braimah YH. Evolutionary Quantitative Proteomics of Reproductive Protein Divergence in Drosophila. Mol Cell Proteomics 2023; 22:100610. [PMID: 37391044 PMCID: PMC10407754 DOI: 10.1016/j.mcpro.2023.100610] [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: 04/09/2022] [Revised: 05/11/2023] [Accepted: 06/04/2023] [Indexed: 07/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Reproductive traits often evolve rapidly between species. Understanding the causes and consequences of this rapid divergence requires characterization of female and male reproductive proteins and their effect on fertilization success. Species in the Drosophila virilis clade exhibit rampant interspecific reproductive incompatibilities, making them ideal for studies on diversification of reproductive proteins and their role in speciation. Importantly, the role of intraejaculate protein abundance and allocation in interspecific divergence is poorly understood. Here, we identify and quantify the transferred male ejaculate proteome using multiplexed isobaric labeling of the lower female reproductive tract before and immediately after mating using three species of the virilis group. We identified over 200 putative male ejaculate proteins, many of which show differential abundance between species, suggesting that males transfer a species-specific allocation of seminal fluid proteins during copulation. We also identified over 2000 female reproductive proteins, which contain female-specific serine-type endopeptidases that showed differential abundance between species and elevated rates of molecular evolution, similar to that of some male seminal fluid proteins. Our findings suggest that reproductive protein divergence can also manifest in terms of species-specific protein abundance patterns.
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Cridland JM, Contino CE, Begun DJ. Selection and geography shape male reproductive tract transcriptomes in Drosophila melanogaster. Genetics 2023; 224:iyad034. [PMID: 36869688 PMCID: PMC10474930 DOI: 10.1093/genetics/iyad034] [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: 01/25/2023] [Revised: 01/25/2023] [Accepted: 02/20/2023] [Indexed: 03/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Transcriptome analysis of several animal clades suggests that male reproductive tract gene expression evolves quickly. However, the factors influencing the abundance and distribution of within-species variation, the ultimate source of interspecific divergence, are poorly known. Drosophila melanogaster, an ancestrally African species that has recently spread throughout the world and colonized the Americas in the last roughly 100 years, exhibits phenotypic and genetic latitudinal clines on multiple continents, consistent with a role for spatially varying selection in shaping its biology. Nevertheless, geographic expression variation in the Americas is poorly described, as is its relationship to African expression variation. Here, we investigate these issues through the analysis of two male reproductive tissue transcriptomes [testis and accessory gland (AG)] in samples from Maine (USA), Panama, and Zambia. We find dramatic differences between these tissues in differential expression between Maine and Panama, with the accessory glands exhibiting abundant expression differentiation and the testis exhibiting very little. Latitudinal expression differentiation appears to be influenced by the selection of Panama expression phenotypes. While the testis shows little latitudinal expression differentiation, it exhibits much greater differentiation than the accessory gland in Zambia vs American population comparisons. Expression differentiation for both tissues is non-randomly distributed across the genome on a chromosome arm scale. Interspecific expression divergence between D. melanogaster and D. simulans is discordant with rates of differentiation between D. melanogaster populations. Strongly heterogeneous expression differentiation across tissues and timescales suggests a complex evolutionary process involving major temporal changes in the way selection influences expression evolution in these organs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julie M Cridland
- Department of Evolution and Ecology, University of California-Davis, Davis, CA 95616, USA
| | - Colin E Contino
- Department of Evolution and Ecology, University of California-Davis, Davis, CA 95616, USA
| | - David J Begun
- Department of Evolution and Ecology, University of California-Davis, Davis, CA 95616, USA
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