Self-Referencing as a Universal Mechanism Promoting Polyandry in Insects

主要研究人员：Scott Kitchener SakalukProposal编号：IOS-0718140项目标题：自我引用作为促进一夫多妻制的普遍机制昆虫雌性动物经常与许多不同的雄性动物交配，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，通过与不止一只雄性交配，雌性获得了良好的基因，从而提高了它们后代的健康和存活率。在这种情况下，人们可能会认为雌性比之前的配偶更喜欢新奇的交配对象，事实上，对几个无关物种的研究表明，雌性更喜欢新奇的雄性。但雌性如何区分新的雄性和以前的交配伴侣？早期对蟋蟀的研究表明，雌性通过在交配时用自己的气味标记雄性来做到这一点。当一只雌性后来遇到前交配伙伴时，她只需要将自己的气味与雄性的气味进行比较。如果她发现这只雄性被注入了她自己的化学特征，她可以避免与那只雄性交配，而是选择一个新的交配伙伴。这种简单的自我参照形式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动物可以最大限度地增加交配伙伴的多样性。建议的研究集中在角质碳氢化合物(CHCs)作为化学感觉自我参照的基础上。CHCs是昆虫角质层表面丰富的脂肪分子，在昆虫交流中起着不可或缺的作用。女性的CHC档案将被操纵，看看女性对以前配偶的厌恶能否被实验性地消除。将通过化学方法禁用与板球接触的化学感受器来检验雌性对化学线索的依赖程度，以识别以前的配偶。行为测试将被用来确定自我参照的化学感觉线索持续多长时间，以及当雄性被其他雌性的气味弥漫时，它们被掩盖的程度。这些研究不仅将有助于在昆虫中建立潜在的普遍的配偶识别机制，还可能导致识别出抑制雌性交配行为的化合物，为害虫物种的生物防治提供一种相对安全但有效的手段。这项拟议的研究将为一名博士后研究员以及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界代表性不足的问题。研究生和私人投资机构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方案。

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.