Dataset Information

Maternal Age-Related Depletion of Offspring Genetic Variance in Immune Response to Phytohaemagglutinin in the Blue Tit (Cyanistes caeruleus).

ABSTRACT: Studies examining age-specific patterns in genetic variance have focussed primarily on changes in the genetic variance within cohorts. It remains unclear whether parental age may affect the genetic variance among offspring. To date, such an effect has been reported only in a single study performed in a wild bird population. Here, we provide experimental evidence that the additive genetic variance (VA) observed among offspring may be related to parental age in a wild passerine-the blue tit (Cyanistes caeruleus). To separate genetic and environmental components of phenotypic variance in nestling body size and immune function we cross-fostered nestlings between pairs of broods born to young and old mothers and used an animal model to estimate VA. We show that the genetic variance in immune response to phytohaemagglutinin (PHA) and body weight among offspring depends on maternal age. VA in response to PHA appeared to be lower among nestlings of older mothers. Such a tendency was not observed for tarsus length. We argue that the lower VA may result either from depletion of additive genetic variation due to selection acting on parents across age classes or from environmental effects confounded with parental age. Thus, our study suggests that parental age may significantly affect estimates of quantitative genetic parameters in the offspring.

SUBMITTER: Drobniak SM

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4328104 | biostudies-other | 2015

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-other

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Publications

Maternal Age-Related Depletion of Offspring Genetic Variance in Immune Response to Phytohaemagglutinin in the Blue Tit (<i>Cyanistes caeruleus</i>).

Drobniak Szymon M SM Dubiec Anna A Gustafsson Lars L Cichoń Mariusz M

Evolutionary biology 20141204 1

Studies examining age-specific patterns in genetic variance have focussed primarily on changes in the genetic variance within cohorts. It remains unclear whether parental age may affect the genetic variance among offspring. To date, such an effect has been reported only in a single study performed in a wild bird population. Here, we provide experimental evidence that the additive genetic variance (V<sub>A</sub>) observed among offspring may be related to parental age in a wild passerine-the blue ...[more]

PMID: 25705062

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Project description:The hatching success of a bird's egg is one of the key determinants of avian reproductive success, which may be compromised by microbial infections causing embryonic death. During incubation, outer eggshell bacterial communities pose a constant threat of pathogen translocation and embryo infection. One of the parental strategies to mitigate this threat is the incorporation of maternal immune factors into the egg albumen and yolk. It has been suggested that habitat changes like forest fragmentation can affect environmental factors and life-history traits that are linked to egg contamination. This study aims at investigating relationships between microbial pressure, immune investment and hatching success in two abundant forest bird species and analyzing to what extent these are driven by extrinsic (environmental) factors. We here compared (1) the bacterial load and composition on eggshells, (2) the level of immune defenses in eggs, and (3) the reproductive success between great (Parus major) and blue (Cyanistes caeruleus) tits in Belgium and examined if forest fragmentation affects these parameters. Analysis of 70 great tit and 34 blue tit eggshells revealed a similar microbiota composition (Enterobacteriaceae, Lactobacillus spp., Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes), but higher bacterial loads in great tits. Forest fragmentation was not identified as an important explanatory variable. Although a significant negative correlation between hatching success and bacterial load on the eggshells in great tits corroborates microbial pressure to be a driver of embryonic mortality, the overall hatching success was only marginally lower than in blue tits. This may be explained by the significantly higher levels of lysozyme and IgY in the eggs of great tits, protecting the embryo from increased infection pressure. Our results show that immune investment in eggs is suggested to be a species-specific adaptive trait that serves to protect hatchlings from pathogen pressure, which is not directly linked to habitat fragmentation.

Dataset Information

Maternal Age-Related Depletion of Offspring Genetic Variance in Immune Response to Phytohaemagglutinin in the Blue Tit (Cyanistes caeruleus).

Publications

Maternal Age-Related Depletion of Offspring Genetic Variance in Immune Response to Phytohaemagglutinin in the Blue Tit (<i>Cyanistes caeruleus</i>).

Similar Datasets

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