Sanghvi Krish, Gascoigne Samuel J L, Todorova Biliana, Vega-Trejo Regina, Pizzari Tommaso, Sepil Irem
Am Nat. 2025 Aug;206(2):E29-E46. doi: 10.1086/736479. Epub 2025 Jul 2.
AbstractA father's age at conception is predicted to affect not only his own fertility but also his offspring's fitness. Offspring born to old fathers are assumed to be less fit than those of young fathers. However, under low mating rates, paternal age might be confounded with the duration for which mature sperm are stored in fathers prior to ejaculation. Studies that disentangle the confounding paternal effects of sperm storage duration from those of age on offspring are lacking. We use to test the separate and interactive effects of paternal age and sexual rest on offspring fitness. As expected, old fathers produce fewer offspring than young fathers; however, paternal age does not influence the survival or age-dependent reproductive success of sons or daughters. Instead, a long duration of paternal sexual rest negatively impacts the reproductive success of the conceived sons. Furthermore, daughters of low reproductive quality selectively disappear with age, but sons do not, highlighting that demographic processes can further modulate paternal age effects. Overall, we highlight that paternal age effects might not be as pervasive as previously assumed and suggest that paternal sexual rest might be more important in influencing offspring phenotypes.
受孕时父亲的年龄预计不仅会影响其自身的生育能力，还会影响其后代的健康状况。人们认为，年长父亲所生的后代不如年轻父亲所生的后代健康。然而，在低交配率情况下，父亲年龄可能会与成熟精子在射精前在体内储存的时间相互混淆。目前缺乏将精子储存时间对后代的混杂父系效应与年龄对后代的效应区分开来的研究。我们通过[具体方式]来测试父亲年龄和性休止对后代健康状况的单独和交互作用。正如预期的那样，年长父亲生育的后代比年轻父亲少；然而，父亲年龄并不影响儿子或女儿的生存或与年龄相关的繁殖成功率。相反，父亲长时间的性休止会对受孕儿子的繁殖成功率产生负面影响。此外，繁殖质量低的女儿会随着年龄增长而选择性消失，但儿子不会，这突出表明人口过程会进一步调节父亲年龄效应。总体而言，我们强调父亲年龄效应可能不像以前假设的那样普遍，并表明父亲的性休止在影响后代表型方面可能更重要。
