Sex differences in ageing in natural populations of vertebrates
Sex differences in ageing in natural populations of vertebrates
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DOI：
10.1098/rspb.2007.1138
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发表时间：
2007-12-22
影响因子：
4.7
通讯作者：
Isvaran, K.
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Clutton-Brock, T. H.;Isvaran, K.
在许多长寿的脊椎动物（包括人类）中，成年雄性的寿命比成年雌性短，部分原因是雄性的年死亡率较高，部分原因是老龄化速度的性别差异。一个可能的解释是，在一夫多妻制物种中，雄性之间激烈的性内竞争限制了个体雄性能够成功繁殖的季节数量，削弱了选择压力，有利于雄性相对于雌性的成年寿命。如果是这样的话，在成年寿命和衰老的开始和速度的性别差异应该是更大的一夫多妻制的物种比在一夫一妻制的，其幅度应与有效的繁殖男性相比，女性的持续时间。在这里，我们使用脊椎动物的纵向研究的数据表明，减少寿命的成年男性（相对于女性）通常与男性比女性生存随着年龄的增加，在很大程度上仅限于一夫多妻制的物种更快的下降。在不同物种的成年寿命的性别差异的幅度是一致的有效繁殖的持续时间的性别差异的幅度，计算在幸存的成年人。我们的研究结果是一致的建议，在一夫多妻制的物种衰老的性别差异是一个结果，男性比女性寿命较弱的选择。
In many long-lived vertebrates (including humans), adult males have shorter lifespans than adult females, partly as a result of higher annual rates of mortality in males and partly owing to sex differences in the rate of ageing. A probable explanation of the evolution of sex differences in ageing is that, in polygynous species, intense intrasexual competition between males restricts the number of seasons for which individual males are able to breed successfully, weakening selection pressures favouring adult longevity in males relative to females. If this is the case, sex differences in adult longevity and in the onset and rate of senescence should be greater in polygynous species than in monogamous ones and their magnitude should be related to the duration of effective breeding males compared with females. Here, we use data from longitudinal studies of vertebrates to show that reduced longevity in adult males (relative to females) is commonly associated with a more rapid decline in male than female survival with increasing age and is largely confined to polygynous species. The magnitude of sex differences in adult longevity in different species is consistently related to the magnitude of sex differences in the duration of effective breeding, calculated across surviving adults. Our results are consistent with the suggestion that sex differences in senescence in polygynous species are a consequence of weaker selection for longevity in males than females.