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Age-related shapes of the cost of reproduction in vertebrates.

ABSTRACT: The shape of the association between age and the cost of reproduction varies across species. However, it is unclear whether there are any general patterns in the way the cost of reproduction varies with life history, taxon or ecological function. Using a simple theoretical method, we identified three characteristic patterns to describe the age-related survival cost of reproduction. The most frequent pattern is an approximately exponential decay (ED) with increasing age. Two additional u-shaped patterns were identified, where the cost of reproduction was higher for young and old individuals compared with intermediate-aged individuals. The majority of these u-shaped curves suggested higher costs of reproduction at older ages (RQ), with the rest suggesting a higher cost at young ages (LQ). While predators were most likely to exhibit ED-shaped cost curves, herbivores were equally likely to exhibit ED and RQ curves; birds were likely to exhibit ED-shaped curves and mammals were split equally between ED and RQ curves. These findings suggest that there may be predictable differences in the age-related shape of the cost of reproduction between species, but further research is required to identify the mechanisms generating such differences.

SUBMITTER: Proaktor G

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2391220 | biostudies-literature | 2007 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Age-related shapes of the cost of reproduction in vertebrates.

Proaktor G G Milner-Gulland E J EJ Coulson T T

Biology letters 20071201 6

The shape of the association between age and the cost of reproduction varies across species. However, it is unclear whether there are any general patterns in the way the cost of reproduction varies with life history, taxon or ecological function. Using a simple theoretical method, we identified three characteristic patterns to describe the age-related survival cost of reproduction. The most frequent pattern is an approximately exponential decay (ED) with increasing age. Two additional u-shaped p ...[more]

PMID: 17848360

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Project description:Study questionAre reproductive characteristics associated with genome-wide DNA methylation and epigenetic age?Summary answerOur data suggest that increasing parity is associated with differences in blood DNA methylation and small increases in epigenetic age.What is known alreadyA study of 397 young Filipino women (ages 20-22) observed increasing epigenetic age with an increasing number of pregnancies.Study design, size, durationWe used data from 2356 non-Hispanic white women (ages 35-74) enrolled in the Sister Study cohort.Participants/materials, setting, methodsData on reproductive history were ascertained via questionnaire. Of the 2356 women, 1897 (81%) reported at least one live birth. Among parous women, 487 (26%) women reported ever experiencing a pregnancy complication. Three epigenetic clocks (i.e. Hannum, Horvath and Levine) and genome-wide methylation were measured in DNA from whole blood using Illumina's HumanMethylation450 BeadChip. We estimated association β-values and 95% CIs using linear regression.Main results and the role of chanceAll three epigenetic clocks showed weak associations between number of births and epigenetic age (per live birth; Hannum: β = 0.16, 95% CI = 0.02, 0.29, P = 0.03; Horvath: β = 0.12, 95% CI = -0.04, 0.27, P = 0.14; Levine: β = 0.27, 95% CI = 0.08, 0.45, P = 0.01); however, additional adjustment for current BMI attenuated the associations. Among parous women, a history of abnormal glucose tolerance during pregnancy was associated with increased epigenetic age by the Hannum clock (β = 0.96; 95% CI = 0.10, 1.81; P = 0.03) and Levine clocks (β = 1.69; 95% CI = 0.54, 2.84; P < 0.01). In epigenome-wide analysis, increasing parity was associated with methylation differences at 17 CpG sites (Bonferroni corrected P≤ 1.0 × 10-7).Limitations, reasons for cautionWe relied on retrospective recall to ascertain reproductive history and pregnancy complications.Wider implications of the findingsOur findings suggest that parity is associated with small increases in epigenetic age and with DNA methylation at multiple sites in the genome.Study funding/competing interest(s)This research was supported by the Intramural Research program of the NIH, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (Z01-ES049033, Z01-ES049032 and Z01-ES044055). None of the authors have a conflict of interest.Trial registration numberNot applicable.

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Age-related shapes of the cost of reproduction in vertebrates.

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Age-related shapes of the cost of reproduction in vertebrates.

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