Long Tristan A F, Rice William R
Department of Ecology, Evolution and Marine Biology, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA 93106-9610, USA.
Proc Biol Sci. 2007 Dec 22;274(1629):3105-12. doi: 10.1098/rspb.2007.1140.
The strongest form of intralocus sexual conflict occurs when two conditions are met: (i) there is a positive intersexual genetic correlation for a trait and (ii) the selection gradients on the trait in the two sexes are in opposite directions. Intralocus sexual conflict can constrain the adaptive evolution of both sexes and thereby contribute to a species' 'gender load'. Previous studies of adult lifetime fitness of the same sets of genes expressed in both males and females have established that there is substantial intralocus conflict in the LHM laboratory-adapted population of Drosophila melanogaster. Here, we investigated whether a highly dimorphic trait-adult locomotory activity-contributed substantially to the established intralocus sexual conflict. To measure the selection gradient on activity level, both this trait and adult lifetime fitness were measured under the same environmental conditions to which the flies were adapted. We found significant phenotypic variation in both sexes for adult locomotory activity, and that the selection gradients on this variation were large and in opposite directions in the two sexes. Using hemiclonal analysis to screen 99% of the entire genome, we found abundant genetic variation for adult locomotory activity and showed that this variation occurs on both the X and autosomes. We also established that there is a strong positive intersexual genetic correlation for locomotory activity. These assays revealed that, despite the strong, extant sexual dimorphism for the trait, locomotory activity continues to contribute strongly to intralocus sexual conflict in this population.
当满足两个条件时,就会出现最强形式的基因座内性冲突:(i)性状存在正的两性间遗传相关性;(ii)该性状在两性中的选择梯度方向相反。基因座内性冲突会限制两性的适应性进化,从而导致物种的“性别负荷”。先前对在雄性和雌性中均表达的同一组基因的成年期终生适合度的研究表明,在黑腹果蝇的LHM实验室适应种群中存在大量基因座内冲突。在此,我们研究了一种高度二态性的性状——成年运动活性——是否对已确定的基因座内性冲突有重大贡献。为了测量活动水平的选择梯度,在果蝇所适应的相同环境条件下测量了该性状和成年期终生适合度。我们发现两性在成年运动活性方面均存在显著的表型变异,并且该变异在两性中的选择梯度很大且方向相反。使用半克隆分析筛选了整个基因组的99%,我们发现成年运动活性存在丰富的遗传变异,并表明这种变异发生在X染色体和常染色体上。我们还确定运动活性存在很强的正两性间遗传相关性。这些分析表明,尽管该性状存在强烈的、现存的两性异形,但运动活性在这个种群中仍对基因座内性冲突有很大贡献。