Haploid selection within a single ejaculate increases offspring fitness

An inescapable consequence of sex in eukaryotes is the evolution of a biphasic life cycle with alternating diploid and haploid phases. The occurrence of selection during the haploid phase can have far-reaching consequences for fundamental evolutionary processes including the rate of adaptation, the extent of inbreeding depression, and the load of deleterious mutations, as well as for applied research into fertilization technology. Although haploid selection is well established in plants, current dogma assumes that in animals, intact fertile sperm within a single ejaculate are equivalent at siring viable offspring. Using the zebrafish Danio rerio, we show that selection on phenotypic variation among intact fertile sperm within an ejaculate affects offspring fitness. Longer-lived sperm sired embryos with increased survival and a reduced number of apoptotic cells, and adult male offspring exhibited higher fitness. The effect on embryo viability was carried over into the second generation without further selection and was equally strong in both sexes. Sperm pools selected by motile phenotypes differed genetically at numerous sites throughout the genome. Our findings clearly link within-ejaculate variation in sperm phenotype to offspring fitness and sperm genotype in a vertebrate and have major implications for adaptive evolution.

Hotzy, CosimaUppsala universitet,Evolutionsbiologi(Swepub:uu)cosco468 (författare)
Nakhro, KhriezhanuoUppsala universitet,Evolutionsbiologi (författare)
Rudolf, SandraUppsala universitet,Evolutionsbiologi (författare)
Scofield, Douglas,1966-Uppsala universitet,Evolutionsbiologi(Swepub:uu)dousc151 (författare)
Zajitschek, SusanneUppsala universitet,Evolutionsbiologi,Spanish Natl Res Council, Donana Biol Stn, Seville 41092, Spain(Swepub:uu)susza997 (författare)
Maklakov, Alex AUppsala universitet,Zooekologi,Univ East Anglia, Sch Biol Sci, Norwich NR4 7TJ, Norfolk, England(Swepub:uu)almak425 (författare)
Immler, SimoneUppsala universitet,Evolutionsbiologi,Univ East Anglia, Sch Biol Sci, Norwich NR4 7TJ, Norfolk, England(Swepub:uu)simim357 (författare)
Uppsala universitetEvolutionsbiologi (creator_code:org_t)

Ingår i:Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences:30, s. 8053-80580027-84241091-6490

Av författaren/redakt...: Alavioon, Ghazal; Hotzy, Cosima; Nakhro, Khriezha ...; Rudolf, Sandra; Scofield, Dougla ...; Zajitschek, Susa ...; visa fler...; Maklakov, Alex A; Immler, Simone; visa färre...

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