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Gorshkova E, Kyomen S, Kaucká M, Guenther A. Food quality influences behavioural flexibility and cognition in wild house mice. Sci Rep 2024; 14:16088. [PMID: 38997306 PMCID: PMC11245467 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-66792-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/31/2023] [Accepted: 07/03/2024] [Indexed: 07/14/2024] Open
Abstract
Environmental change is frequent. To adjust and survive, animals need behavioural flexibility. Recently, cognitive flexibility has emerged as a driving force for adjusting to environmental change. Understanding how environmental factors, such as food quality, influence behavioural and/or more costly cognitive flexibility. Here, we investigate the effects of high-quality versus standard food as well as the effects of different housing conditions on both types of flexibility. Our results show that mice that experienced a poorer diet under seminatural conditions showed greater behavioural but not cognitive flexibility. For cage-housed mice, the results were less clear. However, mice fed a poorer diet performed better in innovative problem-solving, thus showing enhanced cognitive flexibility, which was not apparent in the reversal learning paradigm. The observed differences were most likely due to differences in motivation to obtain food rewards. Additionally, animals on poorer diet had lower brain volume, usually related to lower cognitive task performance at the between-species level. Thus, our study emphasises the importance of environmental conditions on behavioural flexibility at the within-species level, highlights that different test paradigms may lead to different conclusions, and finally shows that cage housing of wild animals may lead to patterns that do not necessarily reflect natural conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ekaterina Gorshkova
- RG Behavioural Ecology of Individual Differences, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology, 24306, Plön, Germany.
- Zoology and Functional Morphology of Vertebrates, Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel, Am Botanischen Garten 1-9, 24118, Kiel, Germany.
| | - Stella Kyomen
- RG Evolutionary Developmental Dynamics, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology, 24306, Plön, Germany
| | - Markéta Kaucká
- RG Evolutionary Developmental Dynamics, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology, 24306, Plön, Germany
| | - Anja Guenther
- RG Behavioural Ecology of Individual Differences, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology, 24306, Plön, Germany
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2
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Olayemi A, Schmid DW, Fleischer R, Wilhelm K, Heni AC, Mueller-Klein N, Haikukutu L, Fichet-Calvet E, Günther S, Sommer S. MHC-I alleles mediate clearance and antibody response to the zoonotic Lassa virus in Mastomys rodent reservoirs. PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2024; 18:e0011984. [PMID: 38421939 PMCID: PMC10903922 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0011984] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/18/2023] [Accepted: 02/09/2024] [Indexed: 03/02/2024] Open
Abstract
West African Mastomys rodents are the primary reservoir of the zoonotic Lassa virus (LASV). The virus causes haemorrhagic Lassa fever and considerable mortality in humans. To date, the role of Mastomys immunogenetics in resistance to, and persistence of, LASV infections is largely unknown. Here, we investigated the role of Major Histocompatibility Complex class I (MHC-I) on LASV infection status (i.e., active vs. cleared infection, determined via PCR and an immunofluorescence assay on IgG antibodies, respectively) in Mastomys natalensis and M. erythroleucus sampled within southwestern Nigeria. We identified more than 190 and 90 MHC-I alleles by Illumina high throughput-sequencing in M. natalensis and M. erythroleucus, respectively, with different MHC allele compositions and frequencies between LASV endemic and non-endemic sites. In M. natalensis, the MHC allele ManaMHC-I*006 was negatively associated with active infections (PCR-positive) and positively associated with cleared infections (IgG-positive) simultaneously, suggesting efficient immune responses that facilitate LASV clearance in animals carrying this allele. Contrarily, alleles ManaMHC-I*008 and ManaMHC-I*021 in M. natalensis, and MaerMHC-I*008 in M. erythroleucus, were positively associated with active infection, implying susceptibility. Alleles associated with susceptibility shared a glutamic acid at the positively selected codon 57, while ManaMHC-I*006 featured an arginine. There was no link between number of MHC alleles per Mastomys individual and LASV prevalence. Thus, specific alleles, but not MHC diversity per se, seem to mediate antibody responses to viremia. We conclude that co-evolution with LASV likely shaped the MHC-I diversity of the main LASV reservoirs in southwestern Nigeria, and that information on reservoir immunogenetics may hold insights into transmission dynamics and zoonotic spillover risks.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ayodeji Olayemi
- Natural History Museum, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile Ife, Osun State, Nigeria
| | - Dominik Werner Schmid
- Institute of Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation Genomics, University of Ulm, Ulm, Germany
| | - Ramona Fleischer
- Institute of Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation Genomics, University of Ulm, Ulm, Germany
| | - Kerstin Wilhelm
- Institute of Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation Genomics, University of Ulm, Ulm, Germany
| | | | - Nadine Mueller-Klein
- Institute of Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation Genomics, University of Ulm, Ulm, Germany
| | - Lavinia Haikukutu
- Department of Wildlife Management, Sokoine University of Agriculture, Morogoro, Tanzania
| | - Elisabeth Fichet-Calvet
- Department of Zoonoses Control, Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Stephan Günther
- Department of Virology, Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Simone Sommer
- Institute of Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation Genomics, University of Ulm, Ulm, Germany
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Linnenbrink M. Competitive ability is a fast-evolving trait between house mouse populations (Mus musculus domesticus). Front Zool 2022; 19:31. [PMID: 36482394 PMCID: PMC9733109 DOI: 10.1186/s12983-022-00476-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/04/2022] [Accepted: 11/08/2022] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND House mice are commensal animals with a nearly global distribution, structured into well differentiated local populations. Besides genetic differences between the populations, they have also diverged behaviorally over time, whereby it remains open how fast general behavioral characteristics can change. Here we study the competitive potential of two very recently separated populations of the Western house mouse (Mus musculus domesticus) by using two different approaches-one under controlled cage conditions, the other under more natural conditions in enclosures mimicking a secondary encounter condition. RESULTS We observe a clear bias in the competitive ability towards one of the populations for both tests. The measured behavioral bias is also reflected in the number of hybrid offspring produced in the enclosures. CONCLUSION Our data suggest that key behavioral characteristics with a direct influence on relative fitness can quickly change during the evolution of populations. It seems possible that the colonization situation in Western Europe, with a rapid spread of the mice after their arrival, would have favored more competitive populations at the expansion front. The study shows the possible impact of behavioral changes on the evolution of populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Miriam Linnenbrink
- grid.419520.b0000 0001 2222 4708Max-Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology, August-Thienemann Str. 2, 24306 Plön, Germany
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Otto M, Zheng Y, Wiehe T. Recombination, selection and the evolution of tandem gene arrays. Genetics 2022; 221:6572811. [PMID: 35460227 PMCID: PMC9252282 DOI: 10.1093/genetics/iyac052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/26/2022] [Accepted: 03/17/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Multigene families—immunity genes or sensory receptors, for instance—are often subject to diversifying selection. Allelic diversity may be favored not only through balancing or frequency-dependent selection at individual loci but also by associating different alleles in multicopy gene families. Using a combination of analytical calculations and simulations, we explored a population genetic model of epistatic selection and unequal recombination, where a trade-off exists between the benefit of allelic diversity and the cost of copy abundance. Starting from the neutral case, where we showed that gene copy number is Gamma distributed at equilibrium, we derived also the mean and shape of the limiting distribution under selection. Considering a more general model, which includes variable population size and population substructure, we explored by simulations mean fitness and some summary statistics of the copy number distribution. We determined the relative effects of selection, recombination, and demographic parameters in maintaining allelic diversity and shaping the mean fitness of a population. One way to control the variance of copy number is by lowering the rate of unequal recombination. Indeed, when encoding recombination by a rate modifier locus, we observe exactly this prediction. Finally, we analyzed the empirical copy number distribution of 3 genes in human and estimated recombination and selection parameters of our model.
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Affiliation(s)
- Moritz Otto
- Institut für Genetik, Universität zu Köln, Zülpicher Straße 47a, 50674 Köln, Germany
| | - Yichen Zheng
- Institut für Genetik, Universität zu Köln, Zülpicher Straße 47a, 50674 Köln, Germany
| | - Thomas Wiehe
- Institut für Genetik, Universität zu Köln, Zülpicher Straße 47a, 50674 Köln, Germany
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Keshavarz M, Savriama Y, Refki P, Reeves RG, Tautz D. Natural copy number variation of tandemly repeated regulatory SNORD RNAs leads to individual phenotypic differences in mice. Mol Ecol 2021; 30:4708-4722. [PMID: 34252239 DOI: 10.1111/mec.16076] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2021] [Accepted: 07/05/2021] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Abstract
Genic copy number differences can have phenotypic consequences, but so far this has not been studied in detail in natural populations. Here, we analysed the natural variation of two families of tandemly repeated regulatory small nucleolar RNAs (SNORD115 and SNORD116) in the house mouse (Mus musculus). They are encoded within the Prader-Willi Syndrome gene region, known to be involved in behavioural, metabolic, and osteogenic functions in mammals. We determined that the copy numbers of these SNORD RNAs show substantial natural variation, both in wild-derived mice as well as in an inbred mouse strain (C57BL/6J). We show that copy number differences are subject to change across generations, making them highly variable and resulting in individual differences. In transcriptome data from brain samples, we found SNORD copy-number correlated regulation of possible target genes, including Htr2c, a predicted target gene of SNORD115, as well as Ankrd11, a predicted target gene of SNORD116. Ankrd11 is a chromatin regulator, which has previously been implicated in regulating the development of the skull. Based on morphometric shape analysis of the skulls of individual mice of the inbred strain, we show that shape measures correlate with SNORD116 copy numbers in the respective individuals. Our results suggest that the variable dosage of regulatory RNAs can lead to phenotypic variation between individuals that would typically have been ascribed to environmentally induced variation, while it is actually encoded in individual differences of copy numbers of regulatory molecules.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Yoland Savriama
- Max-Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology, Plön, Germany
| | - Peter Refki
- Max-Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology, Plön, Germany
| | - R Guy Reeves
- Max-Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology, Plön, Germany
| | - Diethard Tautz
- Max-Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology, Plön, Germany
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Balard A, Jarquín-Díaz VH, Jost J, Martincová I, Ďureje Ľ, Piálek J, Macholán M, Goüy de Bellocq J, Baird SJE, Heitlinger E. Intensity of infection with intracellular Eimeria spp. and pinworms is reduced in hybrid mice compared to parental subspecies. J Evol Biol 2020; 33:435-448. [PMID: 31834960 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.13578] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2019] [Revised: 11/20/2019] [Accepted: 12/09/2019] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
Genetic diversity in animal immune systems is usually beneficial. In hybrid recombinants, this is less clear, as the immune system could also be impacted by genetic conflicts. In the European house mouse hybrid zone, the long-standing impression that hybrid mice are more highly parasitized and less fit than parentals persists despite the findings of recent studies. Working across a novel transect, we assessed infections by intracellular protozoans, Eimeria spp., and infections by extracellular macroparasites, pinworms. For Eimeria, we found lower intensities in hybrid hosts than in parental mice but no evidence of lowered probability of infection or increased mortality in the centre of the hybrid zone. This means ecological factors are very unlikely to be responsible for the reduced load of infected hybrids. Focusing on parasite intensity (load in infected hosts), we also corroborated reduced pinworm loads reported for hybrid mice in previous studies. We conclude that intensity of diverse parasites, including the previously unstudied Eimeria, is reduced in hybrid mice compared to parental subspecies. We suggest caution in extrapolating this to differences in hybrid host fitness in the absence of, for example, evidence for a link between parasitemia and health.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alice Balard
- Department of Molecular Parasitology, Institute for Biology, Humboldt University Berlin (HU), Berlin, Germany.,Leibniz-Institut für Zoo- und Wildtierforschung (IZW) im Forschungsverbund Berlin e.V., Berlin, Germany
| | - Víctor Hugo Jarquín-Díaz
- Department of Molecular Parasitology, Institute for Biology, Humboldt University Berlin (HU), Berlin, Germany.,Leibniz-Institut für Zoo- und Wildtierforschung (IZW) im Forschungsverbund Berlin e.V., Berlin, Germany
| | - Jenny Jost
- Department of Molecular Parasitology, Institute for Biology, Humboldt University Berlin (HU), Berlin, Germany.,Leibniz-Institut für Zoo- und Wildtierforschung (IZW) im Forschungsverbund Berlin e.V., Berlin, Germany
| | - Iva Martincová
- Research Facility Studenec, Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Ľudovít Ďureje
- Research Facility Studenec, Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Jaroslav Piálek
- Research Facility Studenec, Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Miloš Macholán
- Laboratory of Mammalian Evolutionary Genetics, Institute of Animal Physiology and Genetics, Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Joëlle Goüy de Bellocq
- Research Facility Studenec, Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Stuart J E Baird
- Research Facility Studenec, Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Emanuel Heitlinger
- Department of Molecular Parasitology, Institute for Biology, Humboldt University Berlin (HU), Berlin, Germany.,Leibniz-Institut für Zoo- und Wildtierforschung (IZW) im Forschungsverbund Berlin e.V., Berlin, Germany
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7
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Abstract
Mice (Mus musculus) and rats (Rattus norvegicus) have long served as model systems for biomedical research. However, they are also excellent models for studying the evolution of populations, subspecies, and species. Within the past million years, they have spread in various waves across large parts of the globe, with the most recent spread in the wake of human civilization. They have developed into commensal species, but have also been able to colonize extreme environments on islands free of human civilization. Given that ample genomic and genetic resources are available for these species, they have thus also become ideal mammalian systems for evolutionary studies on adaptation and speciation, particularly in the combination with the rapid developments in population genomics. The chapter provides an overview of the systems and their history, as well as of available resources.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kristian K Ullrich
- Department of Evolutionary Genetics, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology, Plön, Germany.
| | - Diethard Tautz
- Department of Evolutionary Genetics, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology, Plön, Germany
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