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Anderson JA, Lea AJ, Voyles TN, Akinyi MY, Nyakundi R, Ochola L, Omondi M, Nyundo F, Zhang Y, Campos FA, Alberts SC, Archie EA, Tung J. Distinct gene regulatory signatures of dominance rank and social bond strength in wild baboons. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2022; 377:20200441. [PMID: 35000452 PMCID: PMC8743882 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2020.0441] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2021] [Accepted: 08/19/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The social environment is a major determinant of morbidity, mortality and Darwinian fitness in social animals. Recent studies have begun to uncover the molecular processes associated with these relationships, but the degree to which they vary across different dimensions of the social environment remains unclear. Here, we draw on a long-term field study of wild baboons to compare the signatures of affiliative and competitive aspects of the social environment in white blood cell gene regulation, under both immune-stimulated and non-stimulated conditions. We find that the effects of dominance rank on gene expression are directionally opposite in males versus females, such that high-ranking males resemble low-ranking females, and vice versa. Among females, rank and social bond strength are both reflected in the activity of cellular metabolism and proliferation genes. However, while we observe pronounced rank-related differences in baseline immune gene activity, only bond strength predicts the fold-change response to immune (lipopolysaccharide) stimulation. Together, our results indicate that the directionality and magnitude of social effects on gene regulation depend on the aspect of the social environment under study. This heterogeneity may help explain why social environmental effects on health and longevity can also vary between measures. This article is part of the theme issue 'The centennial of the pecking order: current state and future prospects for the study of dominance hierarchies'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jordan A. Anderson
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
| | - Amanda J. Lea
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
- Lewis-Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics, Carl Icahn Laboratory, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
| | - Tawni N. Voyles
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
| | - Mercy Y. Akinyi
- Institute of Primate Research, National Museums of Kenya, Nairobi 00502, Kenya
| | - Ruth Nyakundi
- Institute of Primate Research, National Museums of Kenya, Nairobi 00502, Kenya
| | - Lucy Ochola
- Institute of Primate Research, National Museums of Kenya, Nairobi 00502, Kenya
| | - Martin Omondi
- Institute of Primate Research, National Museums of Kenya, Nairobi 00502, Kenya
| | - Fred Nyundo
- Institute of Primate Research, National Museums of Kenya, Nairobi 00502, Kenya
| | - Yingying Zhang
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
| | - Fernando A. Campos
- Department of Anthropology, University of Texas at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX 78249, USA
| | - Susan C. Alberts
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
| | - Elizabeth A. Archie
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556, USA
| | - Jenny Tung
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
- Duke Population Research Institute, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
- Canadian Institute for Advanced Research, Toronto, Canada M5G 1M1
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Abstract
[Figure: see text].
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Guerrero TP, Fickel J, Benhaiem S, Weyrich A. Epigenomics and gene regulation in mammalian social systems. Curr Zool 2020; 66:307-319. [PMID: 32440291 PMCID: PMC7233906 DOI: 10.1093/cz/zoaa005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2019] [Accepted: 02/12/2020] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Social epigenomics is a new field of research that studies how the social environment shapes the epigenome and how in turn the epigenome modulates behavior. We focus on describing known gene-environment interactions (GEIs) and epigenetic mechanisms in different mammalian social systems. To illustrate how epigenetic mechanisms integrate GEIs, we highlight examples where epigenetic mechanisms are associated with social behaviors and with their maintenance through neuroendocrine, locomotor, and metabolic responses. We discuss future research trajectories and open questions for the emerging field of social epigenomics in nonmodel and naturally occurring social systems. Finally, we outline the technological advances that aid the study of epigenetic mechanisms in the establishment of GEIs and vice versa.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tania P Guerrero
- Department Evolutionary Genetics, Leibniz-Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research (IZW), Alfred-Kowalke-Str. 17, Berlin, D-10315, Germany
- Faculty of Environment and Natural Resources, Albert Ludwig University of Freiburg, Tennenbacher Str. 4, Freiburg, D-79085, Germany
| | - Jörns Fickel
- Department Evolutionary Genetics, Leibniz-Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research (IZW), Alfred-Kowalke-Str. 17, Berlin, D-10315, Germany
- Institute for Biochemistry and Biology, University of Potsdam, Karl-Liebknecht-Str. 24-25, Potsdam, 14476, Germany
| | - Sarah Benhaiem
- Department Ecological Dynamics, Leibniz-Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research (IZW), Alfred-Kowalke-Str. 17, Berlin, D-10315, Germany
| | - Alexandra Weyrich
- Department Evolutionary Genetics, Leibniz-Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research (IZW), Alfred-Kowalke-Str. 17, Berlin, D-10315, Germany
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4
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Increasing conservation translocation success by building social functionality in released populations. Glob Ecol Conserv 2019. [DOI: 10.1016/j.gecco.2019.e00604] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
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5
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Developing individual differences in primate behavior: the role of genes, environment, and their interplay. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2019. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-019-2633-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
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Snyder-Mackler N, Lea AJ. Functional genomic insights into the environmental determinants of mammalian fitness. Curr Opin Genet Dev 2018; 53:105-112. [PMID: 30142491 PMCID: PMC6296864 DOI: 10.1016/j.gde.2018.08.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/19/2018] [Revised: 07/17/2018] [Accepted: 08/02/2018] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
Abstract
Both the social and physical environment shape health, reproduction, and survival across many species, and identifying how these effects manifest at the molecular level has long been a priority in medicine and evolutionary biology. The recent rise of functional genomics has enabled researchers to gain new insights into how environmental inputs shape variation in gene regulation, and consequently, downstream organism-level traits. Here, we discuss recent work on this topic, as well as key knowledge gaps. Research in this area spans a wide range of taxa, but we focus our review on mammalian species because of their close evolutionary proximity to humans and because of their relevance for understanding human health. Improving our understanding of how the environment and the genome are connected promises to shed new light on the mechanisms underlying environmentally-induced disease in humans, as well as the evolution of environmental sensitivity more generally.
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Affiliation(s)
- Noah Snyder-Mackler
- Department of Psychology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA; Center for Studies in Demography and Ecology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA; Washington National Primate Research Center, Seattle, WA 98195, USA.
| | - Amanda J Lea
- Lewis-Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA; Department of Ecology and Evolutionary, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA.
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Rogers J. The behavioral genetics of nonhuman primates: Status and prospects. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2018; 165 Suppl 65:23-36. [PMID: 29380886 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.23384] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
The complexity and diversity of primate behavior have long attracted the attention of ethologists, psychologists, behavioral ecologists, and neuroscientists. Recent studies have advanced our understanding of the nature of genetic influences on differences in behavior among individuals within species. A number of analyses have focused on the genetic analysis of behavioral reactions to specific experimental tests, providing estimates of the degree of genetic control over reactivity, and beginning to identify the genes involved. Substantial progress is also being made in identifying genetic factors that influence the structure and function of the primate brain. Most of the published studies on these topics have examined either cercopithecines or chimpanzees, though a few studies have addressed these questions in other primate species. One potentially important line of research is beginning to identify the epigenetic processes that influence primate behavior, thus revealing specific cellular and molecular mechanisms by which environmental experiences can influence gene expression or gene function relevant to behavior. This review summarizes many of these studies of non-human primate behavioral genetics. The primary focus is on analyses that address the nature of the genes and genetic processes that affect differences in behavior among individuals within non-human primate species. Analyses of between species differences and potential avenues for future research are also discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeffrey Rogers
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics and Human Genome Sequencing Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas 77030
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Lea AJ, Tung J, Archie EA, Alberts SC. Developmental plasticity: Bridging research in evolution and human health. Evol Med Public Health 2018; 2017:162-175. [PMID: 29424834 PMCID: PMC5798083 DOI: 10.1093/emph/eox019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 68] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2017] [Accepted: 10/19/2017] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Early life experiences can have profound and persistent effects on traits expressed throughout the life course, with consequences for later life behavior, disease risk, and mortality rates. The shaping of later life traits by early life environments, known as 'developmental plasticity', has been well-documented in humans and non-human animals, and has consequently captured the attention of both evolutionary biologists and researchers studying human health. Importantly, the parallel significance of developmental plasticity across multiple fields presents a timely opportunity to build a comprehensive understanding of this phenomenon. We aim to facilitate this goal by highlighting key outstanding questions shared by both evolutionary and health researchers, and by identifying theory and empirical work from both research traditions that is designed to address these questions. Specifically, we focus on: (i) evolutionary explanations for developmental plasticity, (ii) the genetics of developmental plasticity and (iii) the molecular mechanisms that mediate developmental plasticity. In each section, we emphasize the conceptual gains in human health and evolutionary biology that would follow from filling current knowledge gaps using interdisciplinary approaches. We encourage researchers interested in developmental plasticity to evaluate their own work in light of research from diverse fields, with the ultimate goal of establishing a cross-disciplinary understanding of developmental plasticity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amanda J Lea
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
| | - Jenny Tung
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
- Institute of Primate Research, National Museums of Kenya, Karen, Nairobi, Kenya
- Duke University Population Research Institute, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
| | - Elizabeth A Archie
- Institute of Primate Research, National Museums of Kenya, Karen, Nairobi, Kenya
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556, USA
| | - Susan C Alberts
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
- Institute of Primate Research, National Museums of Kenya, Karen, Nairobi, Kenya
- Duke University Population Research Institute, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
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Platt ML, Seyfarth RM, Cheney DL. Adaptations for social cognition in the primate brain. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2016; 371:20150096. [PMID: 26729935 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2015.0096] [Citation(s) in RCA: 69] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Studies of the factors affecting reproductive success in group-living monkeys have traditionally focused on competitive traits, like the acquisition of high dominance rank. Recent research, however, indicates that the ability to form cooperative social bonds has an equally strong effect on fitness. Two implications follow. First, strong social bonds make individuals' fitness interdependent and the 'free-rider' problem disappears. Second, individuals must make adaptive choices that balance competition and cooperation-often with the same partners. The proximate mechanisms underlying these behaviours are only just beginning to be understood. Recent results from cognitive and systems neuroscience provide us some evidence that many social and non-social decisions are mediated ultimately by abstract, domain-general neural mechanisms. However, other populations of neurons in the orbitofrontal cortex, striatum, amygdala and parietal cortex specifically encode the type, importance and value of social information. Whether these specialized populations of neurons arise by selection or through developmental plasticity in response to the challenges of social life remains unknown. Many brain areas are homologous and show similar patterns of activity in human and non-human primates. In both groups, cortical activity is modulated by hormones like oxytocin and by the action of certain genes that may affect individual differences in behaviour. Taken together, results suggest that differences in cooperation between the two groups are a matter of degree rather than constituting a fundamental, qualitative distinction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael L Platt
- Departments of Neuroscience, Psychology, and Marketing, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Robert M Seyfarth
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Dorothy L Cheney
- Department of Biology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
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Charruau P, Johnston RA, Stahler DR, Lea A, Snyder-Mackler N, Smith DW, vonHoldt BM, Cole SW, Tung J, Wayne RK. Pervasive Effects of Aging on Gene Expression in Wild Wolves. Mol Biol Evol 2016; 33:1967-78. [PMID: 27189566 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msw072] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Gene expression levels change as an individual ages and responds to environmental conditions. With the exception of humans, such patterns have principally been studied under controlled conditions, overlooking the array of developmental and environmental influences that organisms encounter under conditions in which natural selection operates. We used high-throughput RNA sequencing (RNA-Seq) of whole blood to assess the relative impacts of social status, age, disease, and sex on gene expression levels in a natural population of gray wolves (Canis lupus). Our findings suggest that age is broadly associated with gene expression levels, whereas other examined factors have minimal effects on gene expression patterns. Further, our results reveal evolutionarily conserved signatures of senescence, such as immunosenescence and metabolic aging, between wolves and humans despite major differences in life history and environment. The effects of aging on gene expression levels in wolves exhibit conservation with humans, but the more rapid expression differences observed in aging wolves is evolutionarily appropriate given the species' high level of extrinsic mortality due to intraspecific aggression. Some expression changes that occur with age can facilitate physical age-related changes that may enhance fitness in older wolves. However, the expression of these ancestral patterns of aging in descendant modern dogs living in highly modified domestic environments may be maladaptive and cause disease. This work provides evolutionary insight into aging patterns observed in domestic dogs and demonstrates the applicability of studying natural populations to investigate the mechanisms of aging.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pauline Charruau
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Los Angeles
| | - Rachel A Johnston
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Los Angeles
| | - Daniel R Stahler
- Yellowstone Center for Resources, National Park Service, Yellowstone National Park
| | | | | | - Douglas W Smith
- Yellowstone Center for Resources, National Park Service, Yellowstone National Park
| | | | - Steven W Cole
- Department of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles Cousins Center for Psychoneuroimmunology, Semel Institute, University of California, Los Angeles
| | - Jenny Tung
- Department of Biology, Duke University Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University
| | - Robert K Wayne
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Los Angeles
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11
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Niemelä PT, Santostefano F. Social carry-over effects on non-social behavioral variation: mechanisms and consequences. Front Ecol Evol 2015. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2015.00049] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
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12
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Ramallo MR, Birba A, Honji RM, Morandini L, Moreira RG, Somoza GM, Pandolfi M. A multidisciplinary study on social status and the relationship between inter-individual variation in hormone levels and agonistic behavior in a Neotropical cichlid fish. Horm Behav 2015; 69:139-51. [PMID: 25647157 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2015.01.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/17/2014] [Revised: 01/10/2015] [Accepted: 01/12/2015] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
Social animals with hierarchal dominance systems are particularly susceptible to their social environment. There, interactions with conspecifics and hierarchal position can greatly affect an individual's behavior, physiology and reproductive success. Our experimental model, Cichlasoma dimerus, is a serially-monogamous Neotropical cichlid fish with a hierarchical social system, established and sustained through agonistic interactions. In this work, we aimed to describe C. dimerus social structure and its association with hormonal profiles and testicular cellular composition. We recorded and quantified agonistic interactions from the territorial pair, i.e. the top ranked male and female, and the lowest ranked male of stable social groups. Plasma levels of 11-ketotestosterone (11-KT), testosterone, 17β-estradiol (E2) and cortisol were measured by ELISA. Results show that territorial pairs cooperatively guarded the territory, but rarely attacked in synchrony. Territorial males had higher testosterone and 11-KT plasma levels than non-territorial males, while E2 and an index of its metabolization from testosterone were higher in non-territorial males. No difference was observed in cortisol levels. Plasma 11-KT and an index of the conversion of testosterone to 11-KT, positively correlated with the frequency of aggressiveness, while E2 showed the opposite pattern. Territorial males had a higher gonadosomatic index than non-territorial males. The quantification of testicular cellular types revealed that the percentage of spermatocytes and spermatids was higher in non-territorial males, while territorial males showed a greater percentage of spermatozoa. Thus, C. dimerus male social position within a stable hierarchy is associated with distinct behaviors, steroid levels and testicular degree of development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martín R Ramallo
- Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada - CONICET, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina; Laboratorio de Neuroendocrinología y Comportamiento, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biologia Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Agustina Birba
- Laboratorio de Neuroendocrinología y Comportamiento, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biologia Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Renato M Honji
- Departamento de Fisiologia, Instituto de Biociências, Universidade de São Paulo, Rua do Matão, Trav. 14 n°321, Cidade Universitária, São Paulo 05508-090, Brazil
| | - Leonel Morandini
- Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada - CONICET, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina; Laboratorio de Neuroendocrinología y Comportamiento, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biologia Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Renata G Moreira
- Departamento de Fisiologia, Instituto de Biociências, Universidade de São Paulo, Rua do Matão, Trav. 14 n°321, Cidade Universitária, São Paulo 05508-090, Brazil
| | - Gustavo M Somoza
- Laboratorio de Ictiofisiología y Acuicultura, Instituto de Investigaciones Biotecnológicas-Instituto Tecnológico de Chascomús (IIB-INTECH. CONICET-UNSAM), Chascomús, Argentina
| | - Matías Pandolfi
- Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada - CONICET, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina; Laboratorio de Neuroendocrinología y Comportamiento, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biologia Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina.
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Tung J, Zhou X, Alberts SC, Stephens M, Gilad Y. The genetic architecture of gene expression levels in wild baboons. eLife 2015; 4. [PMID: 25714927 PMCID: PMC4383332 DOI: 10.7554/elife.04729] [Citation(s) in RCA: 86] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/12/2014] [Accepted: 02/03/2015] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Primate evolution has been argued to result, in part, from changes in how genes are regulated. However, we still know little about gene regulation in natural primate populations. We conducted an RNA sequencing (RNA-seq)-based study of baboons from an intensively studied wild population. We performed complementary expression quantitative trait locus (eQTL) mapping and allele-specific expression analyses, discovering substantial evidence for, and surprising power to detect, genetic effects on gene expression levels in the baboons. eQTL were most likely to be identified for lineage-specific, rapidly evolving genes; interestingly, genes with eQTL significantly overlapped between baboons and a comparable human eQTL data set. Our results suggest that genes vary in their tolerance of genetic perturbation, and that this property may be conserved across species. Further, they establish the feasibility of eQTL mapping using RNA-seq data alone, and represent an important step towards understanding the genetic architecture of gene expression in primates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jenny Tung
- Department of Human Genetics, University of Chicago, Chicago, United States
| | - Xiang Zhou
- Department of Human Genetics, University of Chicago, Chicago, United States
| | - Susan C Alberts
- Institute of Primate Research, National Museums of Kenya, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Matthew Stephens
- Department of Human Genetics, University of Chicago, Chicago, United States
| | - Yoav Gilad
- Department of Human Genetics, University of Chicago, Chicago, United States
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Archie EA, Tung J, Clark M, Altmann J, Alberts SC. Social affiliation matters: both same-sex and opposite-sex relationships predict survival in wild female baboons. Proc Biol Sci 2014; 281:20141261. [PMID: 25209936 PMCID: PMC4173677 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2014.1261] [Citation(s) in RCA: 170] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2014] [Accepted: 08/13/2014] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Social integration and support can have profound effects on human survival. The extent of this phenomenon in non-human animals is largely unknown, but such knowledge is important to understanding the evolution of both lifespan and sociality. Here, we report evidence that levels of affiliative social behaviour (i.e. 'social connectedness') with both same-sex and opposite-sex conspecifics predict adult survival in wild female baboons. In the Amboseli ecosystem in Kenya, adult female baboons that were socially connected to either adult males or adult females lived longer than females who were socially isolated from both sexes--females with strong connectedness to individuals of both sexes lived the longest. Female social connectedness to males was predicted by high dominance rank, indicating that males are a limited resource for females, and females compete for access to male social partners. To date, only a handful of animal studies have found that social relationships may affect survival. This study extends those findings by examining relationships to both sexes in by far the largest dataset yet examined for any animal. Our results support the idea that social effects on survival are evolutionarily conserved in social mammals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elizabeth A Archie
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, USA Institute of Primate Research, National Museums of Kenya, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Jenny Tung
- Institute of Primate Research, National Museums of Kenya, Nairobi, Kenya Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA Duke Population Research Institute, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Michael Clark
- Center for Social Research, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, USA
| | - Jeanne Altmann
- Institute of Primate Research, National Museums of Kenya, Nairobi, Kenya Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA Department of Veterinary Anatomy and Physiology, University of Nairobi, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Susan C Alberts
- Institute of Primate Research, National Museums of Kenya, Nairobi, Kenya Duke Population Research Institute, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
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Tung J, Gilad Y. Social environmental effects on gene regulation. Cell Mol Life Sci 2013; 70:4323-39. [PMID: 23685902 PMCID: PMC3809334 DOI: 10.1007/s00018-013-1357-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/12/2013] [Revised: 04/09/2013] [Accepted: 04/29/2013] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
Social environmental conditions, particularly the experience of social adversity, have long been connected with health and mortality in humans and other social mammals. Efforts to identify the physiological basis for these effects have historically focused on their neurological, endocrinological, and immunological consequences. Recently, this search has been extended to understanding the role of gene regulation in sensing, mediating, and determining susceptibility to social environmental variation. Studies in laboratory rodents, captive primates, and human populations have revealed correlations between social conditions and the regulation of a large number of genes, some of which are likely causal. Gene expression responses to the social environment are, in turn, mediated by a set of underlying regulatory mechanisms, of which epigenetic marks are the best studied to date. Importantly, a number of genes involved in the response to the social environment are also associated with susceptibility to other external stressors, as well as certain diseases. Hence, gene regulatory studies are a promising avenue for understanding, and potentially developing strategies to address, the effects of social adversity on health.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jenny Tung
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Box 90383, Durham, NC, 27708, USA,
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Kappeler PM, Barrett L, Blumstein DT, Clutton-Brock TH. Constraints and flexibility in mammalian social behaviour: introduction and synthesis. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2013; 368:20120337. [PMID: 23569286 PMCID: PMC3638441 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2012.0337] [Citation(s) in RCA: 111] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
This paper introduces a Theme Issue presenting the latest developments in research on the interplay between flexibility and constraint in social behaviour, using comparative datasets, long-term field studies and experimental data from both field and laboratory studies of mammals. We first explain our focus on mammals and outline the main components of their social systems, focusing on variation within- and among-species in numerous aspects of social organization, mating system and social structure. We then review the current state of primarily ultimate explanations of this diversity in social behaviour. We approach the question of how and why the balance between behavioural flexibility and continuity is achieved by discussing the genetic, developmental, ecological and social constraints on hypothetically unlimited behavioural flexibility. We introduce the other contributions to this Theme Issue against this background and conclude that constraints are often crucial to the evolution and expression of behavioural flexibility. In exploring these issues, the enduring relevance of Tinbergen's seminal paper 'On aims and methods in ethology', with its advocacy of an integrative, four-pronged approach to studying behaviour becomes apparent: an exceptionally fitting tribute on the 50th anniversary of its publication.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peter M Kappeler
- Department of Sociobiology/Anthropology, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany.
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Barrett L, Blumstein DT, Clutton-Brock TH, Kappeler PM. Taking note of Tinbergen, or: the promise of a biology of behaviour. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2013; 368:20120352. [PMID: 23569300 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2012.0352] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
In this concluding paper, we revisit Tinbergen's 1963 article and assess its impact on the field of behavioural research in general, and the papers in this volume in particular. We show how Tinbergen's insistence that greater attention should be paid to studies of 'survival value' has yielded immense returns over the past 50 years, allowing an integrative biology of behaviour to emerge and thrive, and that his addition of ontogeny to the 'major problems of biology' was both insightful and prescient.
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Affiliation(s)
- Louise Barrett
- Department of Psychology, University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, Canada.
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Holekamp KE, Swanson EM, Van Meter PE. Developmental constraints on behavioural flexibility. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2013; 368:20120350. [PMID: 23569298 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2012.0350] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
We suggest that variation in mammalian behavioural flexibility not accounted for by current socioecological models may be explained in part by developmental constraints. From our own work, we provide examples of constraints affecting variation in behavioural flexibility, not only among individuals, but also among species and higher taxonomic units. We first implicate organizational maternal effects of androgens in shaping individual differences in aggressive behaviour emitted by female spotted hyaenas throughout the lifespan. We then compare carnivores and primates with respect to their locomotor and craniofacial adaptations. We inquire whether antagonistic selection pressures on the skull might impose differential functional constraints on evolvability of skulls and brains in these two orders, thus ultimately affecting behavioural flexibility in each group. We suggest that, even when carnivores and primates would theoretically benefit from the same adaptations with respect to behavioural flexibility, carnivores may nevertheless exhibit less behavioural flexibility than primates because of constraints imposed by past adaptations in the morphology of the limbs and skull. Phylogenetic analysis consistent with this idea suggests greater evolutionary lability in relative brain size within families of primates than carnivores. Thus, consideration of developmental constraints may help elucidate variation in mammalian behavioural flexibility.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kay E Holekamp
- Department of Zoology, Michigan State University, 203 Natural Sciences, MI 48824, USA.
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