Knell Robert J
Department of Zoology, University of the Witwatersrand, Private Bag 3, Wits 2050, Johannesburg, South Africa.
Evolution. 1999 Jun;53(3):957-961. doi: 10.1111/j.1558-5646.1999.tb05389.x.
Few studies have investigated the consequences of parasite-mediated sexual selection on the parasites involved. In some cases parasite-mediated sexual selection could lead to increased virulence, but I develop a simple model that shows that, if a parasite is sexually transmitted (i.e., is a sexually transmitted disease, or STD) and if mating success of the host is adversely affected by the parasite, then less virulent STDs will be selected for because transmission of the STD depends on the mating success of the host. This selection for reduced virulence could have important consequences for the role of STDs in sexual selection.
很少有研究调查寄生虫介导的性选择对相关寄生虫的影响。在某些情况下，寄生虫介导的性选择可能导致毒力增加，但我构建了一个简单模型，该模型表明，如果寄生虫是通过性传播的（即属于性传播疾病，或STD），并且如果宿主的交配成功率受到寄生虫的不利影响，那么毒力较低的性传播疾病将被选择，因为性传播疾病的传播取决于宿主的交配成功率。这种对降低毒力的选择可能对性传播疾病在性选择中的作用产生重要影响。
