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Jones ME, Sheard C. The macroevolutionary dynamics of mammalian sexual size dimorphism. Proc Biol Sci 2023; 290:20231211. [PMID: 37964522 PMCID: PMC10646455 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2023.1211] [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: 05/31/2023] [Accepted: 10/13/2023] [Indexed: 11/16/2023] Open
Abstract
Sexual size dimorphism (SSD) is a common phenomenon across the animal kingdom. Mammals are unusual in primarily displaying male-biased SSD, where males of a species are typically larger than females. The driving factors behind the evolution of this SSD have been much debated, with popular hypotheses invoking the influence of mating system and social organization via sexual selection, dietary niche divergence and broad-scale correlations with body size (Rensch's rule). Here, we investigate the macroevolutionary origins and maintenance of SSD among mammals, using phylogenetic general mixed linear models and a comprehensive global dataset to evaluate correlations of diet, body mass, seasonality, social organization and mating system with SSD type. We find that SSD as a whole is lost at a greater rate than it is gained, with female-biased SSD being particularly unstable. Non-monogamous mating systems, vertebrate prey consumption and temperature seasonality correlate with male-biased SSD, while polyandry correlates with female-biased SSD, and both types of SSD are positively correlated with body mass. This is in partial contrast to the predictions of Rensch's rule, which predicts that female-biased SSD would correlate negatively with body size. Taken together, our results highlight the importance of considering multiple ecological and social drivers when evaluating the macroevolutionary trajectory of sex differences in body size.
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Affiliation(s)
- Megan E. Jones
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Manchester, 176 Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9QQ, UK
- Bristol Palaeobiology Group, School of Earth Sciences, University of Bristol, 24 Tyndall Avenue, Bristol BS8 1TQ, UK
| | - Catherine Sheard
- Bristol Palaeobiology Group, School of Earth Sciences, University of Bristol, 24 Tyndall Avenue, Bristol BS8 1TQ, UK
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Aberdeen, Tillydrone Ave, Aberdeen, AB24 2TZ, UK
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Saghian R, Cahill LS, Debebe SK, Rahman A, Serghides L, McDonald CR, Weckman AM, Kain KC, Sled JG. Allometric scaling relationships in mouse placenta. J R Soc Interface 2022; 19:20220579. [PMID: 36349448 PMCID: PMC9653247 DOI: 10.1098/rsif.2022.0579] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/09/2022] [Accepted: 10/19/2022] [Indexed: 08/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Fetal growth and maturation are highly intertwined with placental development during pregnancy. Here we used placental vascular morphology measurements (depth and span) as well as the umbilical artery (UA) diameter of previously published studies on three different mouse strains (C57BL6/J, CD-1 and BALB/c), which were exposed to different conditions (combination antiretroviral therapy, chronic maternal hypoxia and malaria infection) at different embryonic days, to test the hypothesis that placental vascularization and specifically the UA size affect conceptus weight. Interaction of each study parameter with embryonic day, strain and exposure to treatments are studied to investigate the stability of the scaling relationships across and/or within strains and conditions. In addition, the effect of UA diameter on the placental growth measurements (depth and span) is studied. These results show that the power-law scaling relationship of conceptus weight and placental depth with the UA diameter is conserved across strains and conditions with the scaling exponent of approximately 3/8 and 5/8, respectively. By contrast, the relationship between conceptus weight and either the placental span or depth is different between strains and conditions, suggesting multiple mechanisms of vascular adaptation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rojan Saghian
- Mouse Imaging Centre, 25 Orde Street, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Translational Medicine, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Lindsay S. Cahill
- Mouse Imaging Centre, 25 Orde Street, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Department of Chemistry, Memorial University of Newfoundland, Newfoundland and Labrador, St John’s, Canada
| | - Sarah K. Debebe
- Mouse Imaging Centre, 25 Orde Street, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Translational Medicine, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Department of Medical Biophysics, University Health Network-Toronto General Hospital, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Anum Rahman
- Mouse Imaging Centre, 25 Orde Street, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Translational Medicine, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Department of Medical Biophysics, University Health Network-Toronto General Hospital, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Lena Serghides
- Department of Immunology and Institute of Medical Sciences, University Health Network-Toronto General Hospital, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Toronto General Hospital Research Institute, University Health Network, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Women’s College Research Institute, Women’s College Hospital, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Chloe R. McDonald
- Institute of Medical Science, University Health Network-Toronto General Hospital, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Sandra A. Rotman Laboratories, Sandra Rotman Centre for Global Health, University Health Network-Toronto General Hospital, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Andrea M. Weckman
- Sandra A. Rotman Laboratories, Sandra Rotman Centre for Global Health, University Health Network-Toronto General Hospital, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Kevin C. Kain
- Institute of Medical Science, University Health Network-Toronto General Hospital, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Sandra A. Rotman Laboratories, Sandra Rotman Centre for Global Health, University Health Network-Toronto General Hospital, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Tropical Disease Unit, Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - John G. Sled
- Mouse Imaging Centre, 25 Orde Street, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Translational Medicine, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Department of Medical Biophysics, University Health Network-Toronto General Hospital, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
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The morphological allometry of four closely related and coexisting insect species reveals adaptation to the mean and variability of the resource size. Oecologia 2022; 200:159-168. [PMID: 36053351 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-022-05249-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/14/2022] [Accepted: 08/22/2022] [Indexed: 10/14/2022]
Abstract
The size of organisms may result from various, sometimes antagonistic forces operating on distinct traits, within an evolutionary framework that may also be constraining. Morphological allometry, referring to the way trait size scales with body size, has been shown to reflect ecological adaptation to the mean size of the resource exploited. We examined the allometric relationships between rostrum and body size among four insect (Curculio spp.) specialists of oak acorns. In all four species, weevil females drill a hole with their rostrum prior depositing one or a few eggs inside the seed. The four weevil species, that coexist on the same individual trees, displayed partitioned egg-laying periods in the year, thereby encountering acorns of different size and maturation stage. We found marked differences in the allometric slope among females: species laying eggs late in the season had a steeper slope, leading to increasingly longer rostrum relative to body length, along with the mean size of the growing acorns. Females of the smallest species had the longest oviposition period and also had the steepest slope, which provided them with the most variable rostrum length, thereby matching the variable size of the resource through time. Our work highlights the need to consider not only the average size but also the degree of variability in resource size to understand the adaptive value of allometric relationships.
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Toubiana W, Armisén D, Viala S, Decaras A, Khila A. The growth factor BMP11 is required for the development and evolution of a male exaggerated weapon and its associated fighting behavior in a water strider. PLoS Biol 2021; 19:e3001157. [PMID: 33974625 PMCID: PMC8112723 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.3001157] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2020] [Accepted: 02/25/2021] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Exaggerated sexually selected traits, often carried by males, are characterized by the evolution of hyperallometry, resulting in their disproportionate growth relative to the rest of the body among individuals of the same population. While the evolution of allometry has attracted much attention for centuries, our understanding of the developmental genetic mechanisms underlying its emergence remains fragmented. Here we conduct comparative transcriptomics of the legs followed by an RNA interference (RNAi) screen to identify genes that play a role in the hyperallometric growth of the third legs in the males of the water strider Microvelia longipes. We demonstrate that a broadly expressed growth factor, Bone Morphogenetic Protein 11 (BMP11, also known as Growth Differentiation Factor 11), regulates leg allometries through increasing the allometric slope and mean body size in males. In contrast, BMP11 RNAi reduced mean body size but did not affect slope either in the females of M. longipes or in the males and females of other closely related Microvelia species. Furthermore, our data show that a tissue-specific factor, Ultrabithorax (Ubx), increases intercept without affecting mean body size. This indicates a genetic correlation between mean body size and variation in allometric slope, but not intercept. Strikingly, males treated with BMP11 RNAi exhibited a severe reduction in fighting frequency compared to both controls and Ubx RNAi-treated males. Therefore, male body size, the exaggerated weapon, and the intense fighting behavior associated with it are genetically correlated in M. longipes. Our results support a possible role of pleiotropy in the evolution of allometric slope.
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Affiliation(s)
- William Toubiana
- Institut de Génomique Fonctionnelle de Lyon, Université de Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique Unité Mixte de Recherche 5242, Ecole Normale Supérieure de Lyon, Lyon, France
| | - David Armisén
- Institut de Génomique Fonctionnelle de Lyon, Université de Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique Unité Mixte de Recherche 5242, Ecole Normale Supérieure de Lyon, Lyon, France
| | - Séverine Viala
- Institut de Génomique Fonctionnelle de Lyon, Université de Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique Unité Mixte de Recherche 5242, Ecole Normale Supérieure de Lyon, Lyon, France
| | - Amélie Decaras
- Institut de Génomique Fonctionnelle de Lyon, Université de Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique Unité Mixte de Recherche 5242, Ecole Normale Supérieure de Lyon, Lyon, France
| | - Abderrahman Khila
- Institut de Génomique Fonctionnelle de Lyon, Université de Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique Unité Mixte de Recherche 5242, Ecole Normale Supérieure de Lyon, Lyon, France
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Lindberg CL, Hanslin HM, Schubert M, Marcussen T, Trevaskis B, Preston JC, Fjellheim S. Increased above-ground resource allocation is a likely precursor for independent evolutionary origins of annuality in the Pooideae grass subfamily. THE NEW PHYTOLOGIST 2020; 228:318-329. [PMID: 32421861 DOI: 10.1111/nph.16666] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2020] [Accepted: 05/07/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Semelparous annual plants flower a single time during their 1-yr life cycle, investing much of their energy into rapid reproduction. By contrast, iteroparous perennial plants flower multiple times over several years, and partition their resources between reproduction and persistence. To which extent evolutionary transitions between life-cycle strategies are internally constrained at the developmental, genetic and phylogenetic level is unknown. Here we study the evolution of life-cycle strategies in the grass subfamily Pooideae and test if transitions between them are facilitated by evolutionary precursors. We integrate ecological, life-cycle strategy and growth data in a phylogenetic framework. We investigate if growth traits are candidates for a precursor. Species in certain Pooideae clades are predisposed to evolve annuality from perenniality, potentially due to the shared inheritance of specific evolutionary precursors. Seasonal dry climates, which have been linked to annuality, were only able to select for transitions to annuality when the precursor was present. Allocation of more resources to above-ground rather than below-ground growth is a candidate for the precursor. Our findings support the hypothesis that only certain lineages can respond quickly to changing external conditions by switching their life-cycle strategy, likely due to the presence of evolutionary precursors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Camilla Lorange Lindberg
- Department of Plant Sciences, Faculty of Biosciences, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Ås, 1432, Norway
| | - Hans Martin Hanslin
- Department of Urban Greening and Vegetation Ecology, Norwegian Institute of Bioeconomy Research, Ås, 1431, Norway
| | - Marian Schubert
- Department of Plant Sciences, Faculty of Biosciences, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Ås, 1432, Norway
| | - Thomas Marcussen
- Department of Plant Sciences, Faculty of Biosciences, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Ås, 1432, Norway
| | - Ben Trevaskis
- Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization, Canberra, ACT, 2601, Australia
| | | | - Siri Fjellheim
- Department of Plant Sciences, Faculty of Biosciences, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Ås, 1432, Norway
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Bhumika, Singh AK. Patterns of morphological divergence in fruit fly: response to nutritional variations through changes in allometric relationships and trait sizes. J Zool (1987) 2019. [DOI: 10.1111/jzo.12680] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Bhumika
- Genetics Laboratory Department of Zoology Institute of Science Banaras Hindu University Varanasi India
| | - A. K. Singh
- Genetics Laboratory Department of Zoology Institute of Science Banaras Hindu University Varanasi India
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Casha AR, Camilleri L, Gauci M, Gatt R, Sladden D, Chetcuti S, Grima JN. A mathematical model for pressure-based organs behaving as biological pressure vessels. J Theor Biol 2018; 450:37-42. [PMID: 29705490 DOI: 10.1016/j.jtbi.2018.04.034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/27/2017] [Revised: 03/26/2018] [Accepted: 04/25/2018] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
We introduce a mathematical model that describes the allometry of physical characteristics of hollow organs behaving as pressure vessels based on the physics of ideal pressure vessels. The model was validated by studying parameters such as body and organ mass, systolic and diastolic pressures, internal and external dimensions, pressurization energy and organ energy output measurements of pressure-based organs in a wide range of mammals and birds. Seven rules were derived that govern amongst others, lack of size efficiency on scaling to larger organ sizes, matching organ size in the same species, equal relative efficiency in pressurization energy across species and direct size matching between organ mass and mass of contents. The lung, heart and bladder follow these predicted theoretical relationships with a similar relative efficiency across various mammalian and avian species; an exception is cardiac output in mammals with a mass exceeding 10 kg. This may limit massive body size in mammals, breaking Cope's rule that populations evolve to increase in body size over time. Such a limit was not found in large flightless birds exceeding 100 kg, leading to speculation about unlimited dinosaur size should dinosaurs carry avian-like cardiac characteristics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aaron R Casha
- Medical School, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malta, Msida, Malta.
| | - Liberato Camilleri
- Department of Statistics and Operational Research, University of Malta, Msida, Malta
| | - Marilyn Gauci
- Medical School, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malta, Msida, Malta
| | - Ruben Gatt
- Metamaterials Unit, Faculty of Science, University of Malta, Msida, Malta
| | - David Sladden
- St. Bartholomew's Hospital, Barts Health NHS Trust, London, UK
| | - Stanley Chetcuti
- Cardiovascular Center, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Joseph N Grima
- Metamaterials Unit, Faculty of Science, University of Malta, Msida, Malta
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Casha AR, Camilleri L, Manché A, Gatt R, Gauci M, Camilleri-Podesta MT, Grima JN, Scarci M, Chetcuti S. Physiological rules for the heart, lungs and other pressure-based organs. J Thorac Dis 2017; 9:3793-3801. [PMID: 29268387 DOI: 10.21037/jtd.2017.09.86] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
Background The adherence of the heart to physical laws, such as Laplace's Law, may act as a measure of the organ's relative efficiency. Allometric relationships were investigated to assess the heart's efficiency concerning end-diastolic and end-systolic volumes, cardiac pressurization energy, cardiac output and mass. Methods Data to generate allometric relationships was obtained using a literature search, identifying heart and lung data across different mammalian and bird species. Statistical analysis was carried out using ordinary least squares (OLS) estimation. Results Near isometric relationships exist between body mass and seven parameters indicating no "efficiency of size" with scaling of the heart, and size-matching of the heart to the lungs and whole body. Even though there was equal efficiency in pressurization energy generation, cardiac output was maximally efficient in small mammals <10 kg and birds; the human heart reached only 71% efficiency. This loss in cardiac efficiency with increasing body mass can be explained by the aortic cross-section that scales following the three-quarter allometry law, compared to end-systolic and end-diastolic volumes that scale isometrically. The heart is therefore throttled by a relatively small aorta at large body size. Conclusions Mammalian and avian hearts operate at similar efficiencies, demonstrating a high degree of symmorphosis, however cardiac output efficiency decreases in larger animals due to a relatively negative aortic cross-section allometry. This work has a myriad of potential applications including explaining cardiac dysfunction in athletes, patient-prosthesis mismatch in aortic valve replacement and why heavy exercise is associated with a worse prognosis than mild or moderate exercise.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aaron R Casha
- Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malta, Msida, Malta.,Department of Cardiac Services, Mater Dei Hospital, Msida, Malta
| | - Liberato Camilleri
- Department of Statistics and Operational Research, University of Malta, Msida, Malta
| | - Alexander Manché
- Department of Cardiac Services, Mater Dei Hospital, Msida, Malta
| | - Ruben Gatt
- Metamaterials Unit, Faculty of Science, University of Malta, Msida, Malta
| | - Marilyn Gauci
- Department of Anaesthesia, Mater Dei Hospital, Msida, Malta
| | | | - Joseph N Grima
- Metamaterials Unit, Faculty of Science, University of Malta, Msida, Malta
| | - Marco Scarci
- Department of Thoracic Surgery, University College London Hospital, London, UK
| | - Stanley Chetcuti
- Cardiovascular Center, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
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Interspecific comparison of allometry between body weight and chest girth in domestic bovids. Sci Rep 2017; 7:4817. [PMID: 28684855 PMCID: PMC5500593 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-04976-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2016] [Accepted: 05/23/2017] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
The sizes of body parts often co-vary through exponential scaling, known as allometry. The evolution of allometry is central to the generation of morphological diversity. To make inferences regarding the evolved responses in allometry to natural and artificial selection, we compared allometric parameters (slope and intercept) among seven species and breeds of domestic bovids using cross-sectional ontogenetic data and attempted to interpret the differences in these parameters. The allometric slopes were not different among some species, whereas those between breeds within species were, indicating that the slopes were typically invariant but could be changed under strong, specific selection. With the exception of yak, the differences in the intercept independent of the slopes (the alternative intercept) among species might better correspond to their divergence times than the differences in allometric slope, and the remarkably higher alternative intercept found in yaks can be explained by their unique morphological evolution. These findings provide evidence that differences in the alternative intercept can retain traces of the phylogenetic changes derived from differentiation and evolution.
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Hutton P, McGraw KJ. Urban-Rural Differences in Eye, Bill, and Skull Allometry in House Finches (Haemorhous mexicanus). Integr Comp Biol 2016; 56:1215-1224. [PMID: 27371388 DOI: 10.1093/icb/icw077] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Allometry, the proportional scaling of log trait size with log body size, evolves to optimize allocation to growth of separate structures and is a major constraint on the functional limits of animal traits. While there are many studies demonstrating the rigidity of allometry across traits and taxa, comparatively less work has been done on allometric variation across environments within species. Rapidly changing environments, such as cities, may be prime systems for studying the flexibility of allometry because they uniquely alter many environmental parameters (e.g., habitat, light, noise). We studied size variation, allometry, and allometric dispersion of craniofacial traits in both sexes of urban and rural house finches (Haemorhous mexicanus) because many traits in the head are ecologically critical to the survival and acclimation of birds to their environment (e.g., brain: response to cognitive challenges; bill: foraging modes). We found that urban finches had shorter eye axial lengths and skull widths, but longer (but not wider or deeper) bills, than rural finches. Also, allometric slopes of eye, skull, and bill traits differed based on sex and environment. In the rural environment, females had a far steeper allometric slope for eye axial length than males, but such slopes were similar between males and females in the city. Skull allometry was similar for males and females in both environments, but urban birds had a shallower slope for skull length (but not width) than rural birds. Other traits only differed by sex (males had a steeper slope for bill width), and one trait did not differ based on either sex or environment (bill depth). The dispersion of points around the allometric line did not differ by sex or environment for any craniofacial variable. Due to the significant but low genetic divergence between urban and rural finch populations, allometric differences are probably largely driven by plastic forces. We suggest that differences in diet and cognitive demand of urban environments may drive these allometric patterns. Overall, these results indicate that allometry may shift due to rapid environmental change and differentially so between the sexes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pierce Hutton
- School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, 401 E. Tyler Mall, Tempe, AZ 85287, USA
| | - Kevin J McGraw
- School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, 401 E. Tyler Mall, Tempe, AZ 85287, USA
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