The Scent of Familiarity: Chemosensory Self-Referencing as a Proximate Mechanism Mediating Mate Recognition in Insects

最近关于动物交配系统的工作的一个主要焦点是了解为什么雌性通常会与许多不同的雄性交配(一夫多妻制)。一种新的共识是，雌性多雄交配是为了确保它们的后代获得遗传利益。如果这是真的，我们可能会认为雌性会放弃与以前的伴侣交配，而更喜欢新奇的雄性，事实上，雌性对新奇交配伙伴的偏好已经在几个物种中得到了证明。但是雌性如何区分新的雄性和以前的交配伴侣呢？基于板球研究的初步结果表明，雌性通过在交配过程中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。这种被称为“腋窝”效应的机制，可能为雌性提供了一种简单但可靠的方法来识别与她们交配的个体，而不需要任何特殊的认知能力。这种简单的自我参照可能是一种相当常见的机制，通过这种机制，在广泛的动物交配系统中，雌性动物增加了其交配伙伴的多样性，从而使一夫多妻制的遗传利益最大化。NSF的支持将用于启动对遗传近交系雌性的测量，以表征角质层碳氢化合物的遗传变异，角质层碳氢化合物是自我识别中最有可能产生气味的化学物质。如果雌性依靠角质层碳氢化合物来识别之前的配偶，我们预计不同的雌性会表现出不同的化学特征。这是朝着实现父提案中概述的目标迈出的关键的第一步，因为表层碳氢化合物分布的遗传差异是拟议机制的症结所在。拟议研究的广泛影响包括促进几名本科生和研究生的专业成长和发展，并将有助于纠正目前女性在科学界代表性不足的问题。这两个研究实验室都致力于这样一个原则，即健全的本科生教育只有通过本科生直接参与研究才能实现。很大一部分本科生已经在他们培训的某个时候参与了教师研究项目，我们强烈鼓励研究生在专业会议上和公众中传播他们的工作成果。例如，除了定期参加国家/国际会议和在著名期刊上发表文章外，研究生和两位导师还积极参加旨在加强小学教师科学培训和指导女高中生的方案。总体而言，在本研究项目期间，将继续并扩大这些活动。

A major focus of recent work on animal mating systems has been to understand why females typically mate with many different males (polyandry). An emerging consensus is that females mate polyandrously to secure genetic benefits for their young. If this is true, we might expect females to forego mating with previous partners in favor of novel males, and indeed, a female preference for novel mating partners has been demonstrated in several species. But how do females distinguish among novel males and previous mating partners? Preliminary results based on cricket research suggest 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 favour of a novel mating partner. This mechanism, known as the "armpit" effect, may provide females with a simple, but reliable means of identifying individuals with whom they have mated without requiring any special cognitive ability. This type of simple self-referencing could be a fairly common mechanism by which females across a broad range of animal mating systems increase the diversity of their mating partners, and thereby maximize the genetic benefits of polyandry. NSF support will be used to initiate measurements of females from genetically inbred lines to characterize genetic variation in cuticular hydrocarbons, the chemicals that are the most likely source of the odors used in self-recognition. If females rely on cuticular hydrocarbons to recognize previous mates, we would expect different females to express different chemical signatures. This represents a critical first step towards achieving the aims outlined in the parent proposal because genetic differences in cuticular hydrocarbon profiles lies at the crux of the proposed mechanism.Broader impacts of the proposed research include opportunities to enhance the professional growth and development of several undergraduate and graduate students, and will help redress the current under-representation of women in science. There is a commitment in the two research labs to the principle that a sound undergraduate education in science can only come about through the direct involvement of undergraduates in research. A large proportion of undergraduates are already involved in faculty research projects at some point in their training, and graduate students are strongly encouraged to disseminate the results of their work, both at professional meetings and to the lay public. For example, in addition to regular participation at national/international meetings and publication in prestigious journals, graduate students and the two mentors have been active in programs designed to enhance elementary school teachers' training in science and to mentor female high school students. Overall these activities will be continued and expanded during the course of this research project.