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Béziers P, San-Jose LM, Almasi B, Jenni L, Roulin A. Baseline and stress-induced corticosterone levels are heritable and genetically correlated in a barn owl population. Heredity (Edinb) 2019; 123:337-348. [PMID: 30837668 PMCID: PMC6781159 DOI: 10.1038/s41437-019-0203-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/26/2018] [Revised: 01/25/2019] [Accepted: 02/08/2019] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
The hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis is responsible for the regulation of corticosterone, a hormone that is essential in the mediation of energy allocation and physiological stress. As a continuous source of challenge and stress for organisms, the environment has promoted the evolution of physiological adaptations and led to a great variation in corticosterone profiles within or among individuals, populations and species. In order to evolve via natural selection, corticosterone levels do not only depend on the strength of selection exerted on them, but also on the extent to which the regulation of corticosterone is heritable. Nevertheless, the heritability of corticosterone profiles in wild populations is still poorly understood. In this study, we estimated the heritability of baseline and stress-induced corticosterone levels in barn owl (Tyto alba) nestlings from 8 years of data, using a multivariate animal model based on a behavioural pedigree. We found that baseline and stress-induced corticosterone levels are strongly genetically correlated (r = 0.68-0.80) and that the heritability of stress-induced corticosterone levels (h2 = 0.24-0.33) was moderate and similar to the heritability of baseline corticosterone levels (h2 = 0.19-0.30). These findings suggest that the regulation of stress-induced corticosterone and baseline levels evolves at a similar pace when selection acts with the same intensity on both traits and that contrary to previous studies, the evolution of baseline and stress-induced level is interdependent in barn owls, as they may be strongly genetically correlated.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paul Béziers
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland.
- Swiss Ornithological Institute, Sempach, Switzerland.
| | - Luis M San-Jose
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | | | - Lukas Jenni
- Swiss Ornithological Institute, Sempach, Switzerland
| | - Alexandre Roulin
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
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2
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San-Jose LM, Ducret V, Ducrest AL, Simon C, Roulin A. Beyond mean allelic effects: A locus at the major color gene MC1R associates also with differing levels of phenotypic and genetic (co)variance for coloration in barn owls. Evolution 2017; 71:2469-2483. [PMID: 28861897 DOI: 10.1111/evo.13343] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2017] [Revised: 08/09/2017] [Accepted: 08/11/2017] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
Abstract
The mean phenotypic effects of a discovered variant help to predict major aspects of the evolution and inheritance of a phenotype. However, differences in the phenotypic variance associated to distinct genotypes are often overlooked despite being suggestive of processes that largely influence phenotypic evolution, such as interactions between the genotypes with the environment or the genetic background. We present empirical evidence for a mutation at the melanocortin-1-receptor gene, a major vertebrate coloration gene, affecting phenotypic variance in the barn owl, Tyto alba. The white MC1R allele, which associates with whiter plumage coloration, also associates with a pronounced phenotypic and additive genetic variance for distinct color traits. Contrarily, the rufous allele, associated with a rufous coloration, relates to a lower phenotypic and additive genetic variance, suggesting that this allele may be epistatic over other color loci. Variance differences between genotypes entailed differences in the strength of phenotypic and genetic associations between color traits, suggesting that differences in variance also alter the level of integration between traits. This study highlights that addressing variance differences of genotypes in wild populations provides interesting new insights into the evolutionary mechanisms and the genetic architecture underlying the phenotype.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luis M San-Jose
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Biophore Building, CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Valérie Ducret
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Biophore Building, CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Anne-Lyse Ducrest
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Biophore Building, CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Céline Simon
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Biophore Building, CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Alexandre Roulin
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Biophore Building, CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
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3
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Responsiveness to siblings’ need increases with age in vocally negotiating barn owl nestlings. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2017. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-017-2342-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
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4
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Horníček J, Menclová P, Popelková A, Rymešová D, Zárybnická M, Bryja J, Svobodová J. Microsatellite analysis detects low rate of extra-pair paternity in Tengmalm's owl,Aegolius funereus. FOLIA ZOOLOGICA 2017. [DOI: 10.25225/fozo.v66.i1.a3.2017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Jan Horníček
- Department of Ecology, Faculty of Environmental Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Kamýcká 129, 165 21 Prague 6, Czech Republic;, , , ,
| | - Petra Menclová
- Department of Ecology, Faculty of Environmental Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Kamýcká 129, 165 21 Prague 6, Czech Republic;, , , ,
| | - Alena Popelková
- Department of Ecology, Faculty of Environmental Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Kamýcká 129, 165 21 Prague 6, Czech Republic;, , , ,
| | - Dana Rymešová
- Department of Botany and Zoology, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Kotlářská 2, 611 37 Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Markéta Zárybnická
- Department of Ecology, Faculty of Environmental Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Kamýcká 129, 165 21 Prague 6, Czech Republic;, , , ,
| | - Josef Bryja
- Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Czech Academy of Sciences, Květná 8, 603 65 Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Jana Svobodová
- Department of Ecology, Faculty of Environmental Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Kamýcká 129, 165 21 Prague 6, Czech Republic;, , , ,
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Ducret V, Gaigher A, Simon C, Goudet J, Roulin A. Sex-specific allelic transmission bias suggests sexual conflict at MC1R. Mol Ecol 2016; 25:4551-63. [PMID: 27480981 DOI: 10.1111/mec.13781] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2016] [Revised: 07/20/2016] [Accepted: 07/21/2016] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
Sexual conflict arises when selection in one sex causes the displacement of the other sex from its phenotypic optimum, leading to an inevitable tension within the genome - called intralocus sexual conflict. Although the autosomal melanocortin-1-receptor gene (MC1R) can generate colour variation in sexually dichromatic species, most previous studies have not considered the possibility that MC1R may be subject to sexual conflict. In the barn owl (Tyto alba), the allele MC1RWHITE is associated with whitish plumage coloration, typical of males, and the allele MC1RRUFOUS is associated with dark rufous coloration, typical of females, although each sex can express any phenotype. Because each colour variant is adapted to specific environmental conditions, the allele MC1RWHITE may be more strongly selected in males and the allele MC1RRUFOUS in females. We therefore investigated whether MC1R genotypes are in excess or deficit in male and female fledglings compared with the expected Hardy-Weinberg proportions. Our results show an overall deficit of 7.5% in the proportion of heterozygotes in males and of 12.9% in females. In males, interannual variation in assortative pairing with respect to MC1R explained the year-specific deviations from Hardy-Weinberg proportions, whereas in females, the deficit was better explained by the interannual variation in the probability of inheriting the MC1RWHITE or MC1RRUFOUS allele. Additionally, we observed that sons inherit the MC1RRUFOUS allele from their fathers on average slightly less often than expected under the first Mendelian law. Transmission ratio distortion may be adaptive in this sexually dichromatic species if males and females are, respectively, selected to display white and rufous plumages.
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Affiliation(s)
- Valérie Ducret
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Biophore Building, Lausanne, CH-1015, Switzerland.
| | - Arnaud Gaigher
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Biophore Building, Lausanne, CH-1015, Switzerland
| | - Céline Simon
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Biophore Building, Lausanne, CH-1015, Switzerland
| | - Jérôme Goudet
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Biophore Building, Lausanne, CH-1015, Switzerland
| | - Alexandre Roulin
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Biophore Building, Lausanne, CH-1015, Switzerland
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Gaigher A, Burri R, Gharib WH, Taberlet P, Roulin A, Fumagalli L. Family-assisted inference of the genetic architecture of major histocompatibility complex variation. Mol Ecol Resour 2016; 16:1353-1364. [DOI: 10.1111/1755-0998.12537] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2015] [Revised: 04/07/2016] [Accepted: 04/18/2016] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- A. Gaigher
- Laboratory for Conservation Biology; Department of Ecology and Evolution; University of Lausanne; Biophore Lausanne CH-1015 Switzerland
| | - R. Burri
- Department of Evolutionary Biology; Uppsala University; Norbyvägen 18D SE-752 36 Uppsala Sweden
| | - W. H. Gharib
- Interfaculty Bioinformatics Unit; University of Bern; CH-3012 Bern Switzerland
| | - P. Taberlet
- CNRS; Laboratoire d'Ecologie Alpine (LECA); 38000 Grenoble France
- Laboratoire d'Ecologie Alpine (LECA); University of Grenoble Alpes; 38000 Grenoble France
| | - A. Roulin
- Laboratory for Conservation Biology; Department of Ecology and Evolution; University of Lausanne; Biophore Lausanne CH-1015 Switzerland
| | - L. Fumagalli
- Laboratory for Conservation Biology; Department of Ecology and Evolution; University of Lausanne; Biophore Lausanne CH-1015 Switzerland
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Roulin A, Des Monstiers B, Ifrid E, Da Silva A, Genzoni E, Dreiss AN. Reciprocal preening and food sharing in colour-polymorphic nestling barn owls. J Evol Biol 2015; 29:380-94. [PMID: 26563617 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.12793] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2014] [Accepted: 11/05/2015] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Barn owl (Tyto alba) siblings preen and offer food items to one another, behaviours that can be considered prosocial because they benefit a conspecific by relieving distress or need. In experimental broods, we analysed whether such behaviours were reciprocated, preferentially exchanged between specific phenotypes, performed to avoid harassment and food theft or signals of hierarchy status. Three of the results are consistent with the hypothesis of direct reciprocity. First, food sharing was reciprocated in three-chick broods but not in pairs of siblings, that is when nestlings could choose a partner with whom to develop a reciprocating interaction. Second, a nestling was more likely to give a prey item to its sibling if the latter individual had preened the former. Third, siblings matched their investment in preening each other. Manipulation of age hierarchy showed that food stealing was directed towards older siblings but was not performed to compensate for a low level of cooperation received. Social behaviours were related to melanin-based coloration, suggesting that animals may signal their propensity to interact socially. The most prosocial phenotype (darker reddish) was also the phenotype that stole more food, and the effect of coloration on prosocial behaviour depended upon rank and sex, suggesting that colour-related prosociality is state dependent.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Roulin
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Biophore, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - B Des Monstiers
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Biophore, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - E Ifrid
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Biophore, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - A Da Silva
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Biophore, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland.,Behavioural Ecology and Evolutionary Genetics, Max-Planck Institute for Ornithology, Seewiesen, Germany
| | - E Genzoni
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Biophore, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - A N Dreiss
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Biophore, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland.,Institute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
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ŠIndelář J, Kubizňák P, Zárybnická M. Sequential polyandry in female Tengmalm's owl (Aegolius funereus) during a poor rodent year. FOLIA ZOOLOGICA 2015. [DOI: 10.25225/fozo.v64.i2.a5.2015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Jiří ŠIndelář
- Department of Ecology, Faculty of Environmental Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences in Prague, Kamýcká 129, 165 21 Praha 6, Czech Republic
| | - Petr Kubizňák
- Department of Ecology, Faculty of Environmental Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences in Prague, Kamýcká 129, 165 21 Praha 6, Czech Republic
| | - Markéta Zárybnická
- Department of Ecology, Faculty of Environmental Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences in Prague, Kamýcká 129, 165 21 Praha 6, Czech Republic
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9
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Almasi B, Roulin A. Signalling value of maternal and paternal melanism in the barn owl: implication for the resolution of the lek paradox. Biol J Linn Soc Lond 2015. [DOI: 10.1111/bij.12508] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Bettina Almasi
- Swiss Ornithological Institute; CH-6204 Sempach Switzerland
| | - Alexandre Roulin
- Department of Ecology and Evolution; University of Lausanne; Biophore Building CH-1015 Lausanne Switzerland
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10
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Roulin A, Jensen H. Sex-linked inheritance, genetic correlations and sexual dimorphism in three melanin-based colour traits in the barn owl. J Evol Biol 2015; 28:655-66. [PMID: 25656218 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.12596] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2014] [Revised: 01/23/2015] [Accepted: 01/26/2015] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
Theory states that genes on the sex chromosomes have stronger effects on sexual dimorphism than genes on the autosomes. Although empirical data are not necessarily consistent with this theory, this situation may prevail because the relative role of sex-linked and autosomally inherited genes on sexual dimorphism has rarely been evaluated. We estimated the quantitative genetics of three sexually dimorphic melanin-based traits in the barn owl (Tyto alba), in which females are on average darker reddish pheomelanic and display more and larger black eumelanic feather spots than males. The plumage traits with higher sex-linked inheritance showed lower heritability and genetic correlations, but contrary to prediction, these traits showed less pronounced sexual dimorphism. Strong offspring sexual dimorphism primarily resulted from daughters not expressing malelike melanin-based traits and from sons expressing femalelike traits to similar degrees as their sisters. We conclude that in the barn owl, polymorphism at autosomal genes rather than at sex-linked genes generate variation in sexual dimorphism in melanin-based traits.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Roulin
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
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11
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Scriba MF, Rattenborg NC, Dreiss AN, Vyssotski AL, Roulin A. Sleep and vigilance linked to melanism in wild barn owls. J Evol Biol 2014; 27:2057-68. [PMID: 25056556 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.12450] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/06/2014] [Revised: 06/02/2014] [Accepted: 06/19/2014] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
Understanding the function of variation in sleep requires studies in the natural ecological conditions in which sleep evolved. Sleep has an impact on individual performance and hence may integrate the costs and benefits of investing in processes that are sensitive to sleep, such as immunity or coping with stress. Because dark and pale melanic animals differentially regulate energy homeostasis, immunity and stress hormone levels, the amount and/or organization of sleep may covary with melanin-based colour. We show here that wild, cross-fostered nestling barn owls (Tyto alba) born from mothers displaying more black spots had shorter non-REM (rapid eye movement) sleep bouts, a shorter latency until the occurrence of REM sleep after a bout of wakefulness and more wakefulness bouts. In male nestlings, the same sleep traits also correlated with their own level of spotting. Because heavily spotted male nestlings and the offspring of heavily spotted biological mothers switched sleep-wakefulness states more frequently, we propose the hypothesis that they could be also behaviourally more vigilant. Accordingly, nestlings from mothers displaying many black spots looked more often towards the nest entrance where their parents bring food and towards their sibling against whom they compete. Owlets from heavily spotted mothers might invest more in vigilance, thereby possibly increasing associated costs due to sleep fragmentation. We conclude that different strategies of the regulation of brain activity have evolved and are correlated with melanin-based coloration.
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Affiliation(s)
- M F Scriba
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland; Avian Sleep Group, Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Seewiesen, Germany
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12
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Dreiss AN, Roulin A. Divorce in the barn owl: securing a compatible or better mate entails the cost of re-pairing with a less ornamented female mate. J Evol Biol 2014; 27:1114-24. [DOI: 10.1111/jeb.12402] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2013] [Revised: 03/25/2014] [Accepted: 03/26/2014] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- A. N. Dreiss
- Department of Ecology and Evolution; University of Lausanne; Lausanne Switzerland
| | - A. Roulin
- Department of Ecology and Evolution; University of Lausanne; Lausanne Switzerland
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