Self-Referencing as a Universal Mechanism Promoting Polyandry in Insects

项目名称：自我参照是促进昆虫多夫制的普遍机制雌性动物经常与许多不同的雄性交配，这种行为长期以来一直困扰着进化生物学家。然而，最近的研究表明，通过与多个雄性交配，雌性获得了良好的基因，从而提高了后代的健康和存活率。在这种情况下，人们可能会认为雌性更喜欢新的伴侣而不是以前的伴侣，事实上，对几个不相关物种的研究表明，雌性明显更喜欢新的雄性。但是，女性如何区分新男性和以前的交配对象呢？早期对蟋蟀的研究表明，雌性蟋蟀在交配时用自己的气味给雄性蟋蟀做标记。当雌性后来遇到以前的交配对象时，她只需要将自己的气味与雄性的气味进行比较。如果雌蜣螂发现这只雄蜣螂身上充满了自己的化学特征，它就会避免与这只雄蜣螂交配，转而选择新的交配对象。这种简单形式的自我参照可能是一种广泛存在的机制，通过这种机制，不同动物物种的雌性可以最大限度地提高其交配伴侣的多样性。提出的研究重点是角质层碳氢化合物（CHCs）作为化学感觉自我参照的基础。CHCs是昆虫角质层表面丰富的脂肪分子；它们通常在昆虫的交流中起着不可或缺的作用。研究人员将对雌性的CHC谱进行操作，以观察雌性对前配偶的厌恶是否可以通过实验消除。雌性依靠化学线索来识别以前的配偶，将通过化学伤残蟋蟀接触化学感受器来检验。行为测试将用于确定自我参照的化学感觉线索持续多久，以及当雄性充满其他雌性的气味时，它们被掩盖的程度。这些研究不仅有助于建立昆虫配偶识别的潜在普遍机制，还可能有助于鉴定抑制雌性交配行为的化合物，从而提供一种相对安全但有效的害虫生物控制手段。拟议中的研究将为一名博士后和几名本科生和研究生提供培训，并将有助于纠正目前女性在科学领域代表性不足的问题。研究生和pi将继续参与正在进行的旨在加强小学教师‘’‘’科学培训和指导女高中生的项目。

Principal Investigator: Scott Kitchener SakalukProposal Number: IOS-0718140Project Title: Self-Referencing as a Universal Mechanism Promoting Polyandry inInsectsFemale animals often mate with many different males, and this behavior has long puzzled evolutionary biologists. However, recent studies have revealed that by mating with more than one male, females secure good genes that enhance the health and survival of their offspring. That being the case, one might expect females to favor novel mating partners over previous mates, and indeed studies of several unrelated species have shown a clear female preference for novel males. But how do females distinguish between novel males and previous mating partners? Earlier work with crickets suggests that females do so by tagging males with their own odors during mating. When a female encounters a former mating partner later on, she need only compare her own scent with that of the male. If she finds that the male has been imbued with her own chemical signature, she can avoid mating with that male in favor of a novel mating partner. This simple form of self referencing could be a widespread mechanism by which females of diverse animal species maximize the diversity of their mating partners. The proposed research focuses on cuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs) as the basis of chemosensory self-referencing. CHCs are fat molecules abundant on the surface of the insect cuticle; they often play an integral role in insect communication. CHC profiles of females will be manipulated to see if females'' aversion to previous mates can be experimentally abolished. The reliance of females on chemical cues to identify previous mates will be examined by chemically disabling cricket contact chemoreceptors. Behavioral tests will be employed to determine how long self-referent chemosensory cues persist, and to what extent they are masked when males are imbued with odors of other females. Not only will these studies help establish a potentially universal mechanism of mate recognition in insects, they could also potentially lead to the identification of chemical compounds that inhibit female mating behavior, furnishing a relatively safe, but effective means of biological control of insect pest species. The proposed research will provide training to a postdoctoral fellow and several undergraduate and graduate students, and will help redress the current under-representation of women in science. Graduate students and the PIs will continue their participation in ongoing programs designed to enhance elementary school teachers'''' training in science and to mentor female high school students.