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Transcriptomes of parents identify parenting strategies and sexual conflict in a subsocial beetle.

ABSTRACT: Parenting in the burying beetle Nicrophorus vespilloides is complex and, unusually, the sex and number of parents that can be present is flexible. Such flexibility is expected to involve specialized behaviour by the two sexes under biparental conditions. Here, we show that offspring fare equally well regardless of the sex or number of parents present. Comparing transcriptomes, we find a largely overlapping set of differentially expressed genes in both uniparental and biparental females and in uniparental males including vitellogenin, associated with reproduction, and takeout, influencing sex-specific mating and feeding behaviour. Gene expression in biparental males is similar to that in non-caring states. Thus, being 'biparental' in N. vespilloides describes the family social organization rather than the number of directly parenting individuals. There was no specialization; instead, in biparental families, direct male parental care appears to be limited with female behaviour unchanged. This should lead to strong sexual conflict.

SUBMITTER: Parker DJ

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4598741 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Transcriptomes of parents identify parenting strategies and sexual conflict in a subsocial beetle.

Parker Darren J DJ Cunningham Christopher B CB Walling Craig A CA Stamper Clare E CE Head Megan L ML Roy-Zokan Eileen M EM McKinney Elizabeth C EC Ritchie Michael G MG Moore Allen J AJ

Nature communications 20150929

Parenting in the burying beetle Nicrophorus vespilloides is complex and, unusually, the sex and number of parents that can be present is flexible. Such flexibility is expected to involve specialized behaviour by the two sexes under biparental conditions. Here, we show that offspring fare equally well regardless of the sex or number of parents present. Comparing transcriptomes, we find a largely overlapping set of differentially expressed genes in both uniparental and biparental females and in un ...[more]

PMID: 26416581

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Project description:BACKGROUND:It is important for healthcare providers to pay attention to parents' rearing style and children's physical symptoms to promote a healthy quality of life among children with atopic dermatitis. We aimed to identify effects of parenting stress and co-parenting on marital conflict among parents of children with atopic dermatitis. METHODS:Participants were 161 fathers and 161 mothers raising seven-year-old children treated for atopic dermatitis. To confirm the effects of parenting stress and co-parenting on marital conflict, the "actor-partner interdependence mediation model" was used. To verify goodness-of-fit, maximum likelihood method was used, and a confirmatory factor analysis was conducted to confirm the validity of latent variables for model analysis. RESULTS:Fathers' parenting stress had actor (??=?-.46, p <?.001) and partner (??=?-.22, p <?.001) effects on co-parenting, and mothers' parenting stress had actor (??=?-.20, p <?.001) and partner (??=?-.36, p <?.001) effects on co-parenting. Fathers' parenting stress only had an actor effect on marital conflict (??=?.32, p?<?.001). Father's co-parenting had actor (??=?-.29, p?<?.001) and partner (??=?-.22, p?<?.001) effects on marital conflict, and mothers' co-parenting had actor (??=?-.39, p?<?.001) and partner (??=?-.19, p?<?.001) effects on marital conflict. There were significant differences between the two groups concerning three path coefficients: fathers' parenting stress affected fathers' marital conflict, fathers' co-parenting affected fathers' marital conflict, and mothers' co-parenting affected fathers' marital conflict. CONCLUSIONS:It is vital for healthcare providers to seek ways to reduce the marital conflicts of parents of children with atopic dermatitis, including further examination of the role of co-parenting, to address children's physical symptoms and promote their health. Our findings inform management and intervention programs for the families of children with atopic dermatitis.

Dataset Information

Transcriptomes of parents identify parenting strategies and sexual conflict in a subsocial beetle.

Publications

Transcriptomes of parents identify parenting strategies and sexual conflict in a subsocial beetle.

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