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571 results for “Sex differences”
Data from: Age-related sex differences in body condition and telomere dynamics of red-sided garter snakes
Life-history strategies vary dramatically between the sexes, which may drive divergence in sex-specific senescence and mortality rates. Telomeres are tandem nucleotide repeats that protect the ends of chromosomes from erosion during cell division. Telomeres have been implicated in senescence and mortality because they tend to shorten with stress, growth and age. We investigated age-specific telomere length in female and male red-sided garter snakes, Thamnophis sirtalis parietalis. We hypothesized that age-specific telomere length would differ between males and females given their divergent reproductive strategies. Male garter snakes emerge from hibernation with high levels of corticosterone, which facilitates energy mobilization to fuel mate-searching, courtship and mating behaviours during a two to four week aphagous breeding period at the den site. Conversely, females remain at the dens for only about 4 days and seem to invest more energy in growth and cellular maintenance, as they usually reproduce biennially. As male investment in reproduction involves a yearly bout of physiologically stressful activities, while females prioritize self-maintenance, we predicted male snakes would experience more age-specific telomere loss than females. We investigated this prediction using skeletochronology to determine the ages of individuals and qPCR to determine telomere length in a cross-sectional study. For both sexes, telomere length was positively related to body condition. Telomere length decreased with age in male garter snakes, but remained stable in female snakes. There was no correlation between telomere length and growth in either sex, suggesting that our results are a consequence of divergent selection on life histories of males and females. Different selection on the sexes may be the physiological consequence of the sexual dimorphism and mating system dynamics displayed by this species.
Data from: Sex- and tissue-specific differences in telomere length in a reptile
The usage of telomere length (TL) in blood as a proxy for the TL of other tissues relies on the assumption that telomere dynamics across all tissues are similar. However, telomere attrition can be caused by reactive oxygen species (ROS) which may vary with metabolic rate, which itself varies across organs depending upon the life history strategy of an organism. Thus we chose to measure the telomeres of various cell types in juvenile painted dragon lizards, Ctenophorus pictus, given their unusual life history strategy. Individuals typically only experience a single mating season. We measured the TL of male and female dragons using qPCR and observed that TL varied with tissue type and sex. Telomeres of blood cells were longer than those of liver, heart, brain, and spleen, and females had longer telomeres than males. Brain telomeres in males were approximately half the length of those in females. Telomeric attrition in the male brain may be due to the need for rapid learning of reproductive tactics (territory patrol and defence, mate-finding). Significant correlations between the TL of tissue types suggest that blood TL may be a useful proxy for the TL of other tissues. Our comparison of organ-specific telomere dynamics, the first in a reptile, suggests that the usage of blood TL as a proxy requires careful consideration of the life history strategy of the organism.
Intralocus sexual conflict over optimal nutrient intake and the evolution of sex differences in lifespan and reproduction
<p>Despite widespread variation in lifespan across species, three clear patterns exist: sex differences in lifespan are ubiquitous, lifespan is commonly traded against reproduction, and nutrition has a major influence on these traits and how they trade-off. One process that potentially unites these patterns is Intralocus Sexual Conflict (IASC) over the optimal intake of nutrients for lifespan and reproduction. If nutrient intake has sex-specific effects on lifespan and reproduction and nutrient choice is genetically linked across the sexes, IASC will occur and may prevent one or both sexes from feeding to their nutritional optima. Here we determine whether this process is operating in the cricket <i>Gryllodes sigillatus</i>. We show that protein and carbohydrate intake have contrasting effects on lifespan and reproduction in the sexes and that there are strong positive intersexual genetic correlations for the intake of these nutrients under dietary choice. This divergence in nutrient effects, combined with the genetic architecture for nutrient choice is predicted to accelerate the evolutionary response of nutrient intake in males but constrain it in females, suggesting they are losing the conflict. Supporting this view, males and females were shown to regulate nutrient intake to a common ratio that was not perfectly optimal for lifespan or reproduction in either sex, especially in females. Our findings show that IASC over the optimal intake of nutrients is likely to be an important process generating sex differences in lifespan and reproduction and may help explain why females age faster and live shorter than males in <i>G. sigillatus</i>.</p>
Data set: The origin of sex differences in song in a tropical duetting wren
<p>The study of song development has focused on temperate zone birds in which typically only males sing. In the bay wren, Cantorchilus nigricapillus, both sexes sing, performing precisely timed, female-initiated duets in which birds alternate sex-specific song phrases. We investigated the origin of these sex differences by collecting bay wren eggs and nestlings and hand-raising them in individual acoustic isolation chambers. Each bird was tutored with either monophonic or stereophonic recordings of bay wren duets, or heard no song. As adults, each tutored bird individually sang complete duets, singing both male and female song phrases. On occasion, birds learned only the male or female part of a duet to which they were exposed. However, mono-tutored birds showed no sex-specificity in these solo songs, whereas stereo-tutored birds only sang solos consistent with their sex. In addition, stereo-tutored birds acquired songs over a longer period than did mono-tutored birds. In both groups, females showed more sex-specificity during the song learning process. Finally, we observed that tutored and acoustically isolated birds invented male-like songs, whereas only males invent songs in the wild. These results reveal the relative roles played by social versus innate influences in the development of sex-specific song in this species.</p>
Sex-related differences in symptom presentation of patients with aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage
<p>Retrospective study regarding sex-related differences in symptom presentation of patients with aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage.</p>
Data from: Sex differences in the predictability of risk-taking behaviour
<p>Recent research has found that individuals often vary in how consistently they express their behaviour over time (i.e. behavioural predictability) and suggested that these individual differences may be heritable. However, little is known about the intrinsic factors that drive variation in the predictability of behaviour. Indeed, whether variation in behavioural predictability is sex-specific is not clear. This is important, as behavioural predictability has been associated with vulnerability to predation, suggesting that the predictability of behavioural traits may have key fitness implications. We investigated whether male and female eastern mosquitofish (Gambusia holbrooki) differed in the predictability of their risk-taking behaviour. Specifically, over a total of 954 behavioural trials, we repeatedly measured risk-taking behaviour with three commonly used assays—refuge-use, thigmotaxis, and foraging latency. We predicted that there would be consistent sex differences in both mean-level risk-taking behaviour and behavioural predictability across the assays. We found that risk-taking behaviour was repeatable within each assay, and that some individuals were consistently bolder than others across all three assays. There were also consistent sex differences in mean-level risk-taking behaviour, with males being bolder across all three assays compared to females. In contrast, both the magnitude and direction of sex differences in behavioural predictability were assay specific. Taken together, these results highlight that behavioural predictability may be independent from underlying mean-level behavioural traits and suggest that males and females may differentially adjust the consistency of their risk-taking behaviour in response to subtle changes in environmental conditions.</p>
Fig. 1 in A Different Perspective on Sex Dimorphism in the Adult Hermann's Tortoise: Geometric Morphometry.
Fig. 1. HS: Humeral suture, PS: Pectoral suture, FS: Femoral suture.
Sex differences in killifish
<p><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span>Males often experience shorter lifespans than females. Despite extensive research, it is poorly understood how lifespan differences between the sexes are modulated by an interplay among genetic, environmental and social factors. Using four African annual killifish species, we combined comparative data from sex ratios in natural populations with experimental results on sex differences in lifespan and aging in replicated captive populations. In the wild, females consistently outlived males. In socially-housed experimental groups, this sex-specific survival difference persisted in two aggressive species, but ceased in two placid species. When social and physical contacts were prevented by housing all fish individually, male-biased mortality ceased in all species. Fitting demographic survival models revealed that increased baseline mortality, and partly a lack of mortality deceleration in old age, were responsible for a shorter male lifespan. The timing and rate of aging were not different between the sexes. No marker of functional aging we recorded (lipofuscin accumulation, proliferative changes in kidney and liver) differed between males and females, despite their previously confirmed association with functional aging in <i>Nothobranchius</i> killifish. Overall, we demonstrate that sex differences in lifespan and aging in killifish are driven by social and environmental conditions, and may be ameliorated by their modification.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></p>
Sex differences in cognitive aging: a 4-year longitudinal study in marmosets.
<p>Longitudinal studies are essential to understand healthy and pathological neurocognitive aging such as Alzheimer’s Disease, but longitudinal designs are rare in both humans and non-human primate models of aging because of the difficulty of tracking cognitive change in long-lived primates. Common marmosets ( Callithrix jacchus ) are uniquely suited for aging studies due to their naturally short lifespan (10- 12 years), sophisticated cognitive and social abilities and Alzheimer Disease-like neuropathology. We report the first longitudinal study of cognitive aging in marmosets (N=28) as they transitioned from middle- (~ 5 years) to old age (~ 9 years). We characterized aging trajectories using reversal learning with different stimuli each year. Marmosets initially improved on cognitive performance due to practice, but worsened in the final year, suggesting the onset of age-related decline. Cognitive impairment emerged earlier in females than males and was more prominent for discrimination than for reversal learning. Sex differences in cognitive aging could not be explained by differences in motivation or motor abilities, which improved or remained stable across aging. Likewise, males and females did not differ in aging trajectories of overall behavior or reactivity to a social stressor, with the exception of a progressive decline in the initiation of social behavior in females. Patterns of cognitive aging were highly variable across marmosets of both sexes, suggesting the potential for pathological aging for some individuals. Future work will link individual cognitive trajectories to neuropathology in order to better understand the relationships between neuropathologic burden and vulnerability to age-related cognitive decline in each sex.</p>
Data for: Corticosteroid-binding globulin (SERPINA6) establishes postpubertal sex differences in rat adrenal development
<p>Encoded by SerpinA6, plasma corticosteroid-binding globulin (CBG) transports glucocorticoids and regulates their access to cells. We determined how CBG influences plasma corticosterone and adrenal development in rats during the pubertal to adult transition using CRISPR/cas9 to disrupt SerpinA6 gene expression. In the absence of CBG, total plasma corticosterone levels were ∼80% lower in adult rats of both sexes, with a greater absolute reduction in females than in males. Notably, free corticosterone and adrenocorticotropic hormone were comparable between all groups. Between 30 and 90 days of age, wild-type female rats showed increases in adrenal weight and the size of the corticosterone-producing region, the zona fasciculata (zf), in tandem with increases in plasma CBG and corticosterone concentrations, whereas no such changes were observed in males. This sex difference was lost in rats without CBG, such that adrenal growth and zf expansion were similar between sexes. The sex-specific effects of CBG on adrenal morphology were accompanied by remarkable changes in gene expression: ∼40% of the adrenal transcriptome was altered in females lacking CBG, whereas almost no effect was seen in males. Over half of the adrenal genes that normally exhibit sexually dimorphic expression after puberty were similarly expressed in males and females without CBG, including those responsible for cholesterol biosynthesis and mobilization, steroidogenesis, and growth. Rat adrenal SerpinA6 transcript levels were very low or undetectable. Thus, sex differences in adrenal growth, morphology and gene expression profiles that emerge during puberty in rats are dependent on concomitant increases in plasma CBG produced by the liver.</p>
Data from: No evidence for sex differences in the electrophysiological properties and excitatory synaptic input onto nucleus accumbens shell medium spiny neurons
<p>Sex differences exist in how the brain regulates motivated behavior and reward, both in normal and pathological contexts. Investigations into the underlying neural mechanisms have targeted the striatal brain regions, including the dorsal striatum and nucleus accumbens core and shell. These investigations yield accumulating evidence of sexually different electrophysiological properties, excitatory synaptic input, and sensitivity to neuromodulator/hormone action in select striatal regions both before and after puberty. It is unknown whether the electrical properties of neurons in the nucleus accumbens shell differ by sex and whether sex differences in excitatory synaptic input are present before puberty. To test the hypothesis that these properties differ by sex, we performed whole-cell patch-clamp recordings on male and female medium spiny neurons (MSNs) in acute brain slices obtained from prepubertal rat nucleus accumbens shell. We analyzed passive and active electrophysiological properties, and miniature EPSCs (mEPSCs). No sex differences were detected; this includes those properties, such as intrinsic excitability, action potential after hyperpolarization, threshold, and mEPSC frequency, that have been found to differ by sex in other striatal regions and/or developmental periods. These findings indicate that, unlike other striatal brain regions, the electrophysiological properties of nucleus accumbens shell MSNs do not differ by sex. Overall, it appears that sex differences in striatal function, including motivated behavior and reward, are likely mediated by other factors and striatal regions.</p>
Illustratory figures on brain networks, sex differences, and vulnerability to disorders
<p>These figures were initially created for a PhD thesis but may serve the wider (neuroscientific) community. </p>
Adaptive significance of affiliative behaviour differs between sexes in a wild reptile population
<p>In recent years, we have begun to appreciate that social behaviours might exhibit repeatable among-individual variation. Such behavioural traits may even covary and have critical evolutionary implications. Importantly, some social behaviours such as aggressiveness have been shown to provide fitness benefits, including higher reproductive success and survival. However, fitness consequences of affiliative behaviours, especially between or among sexes, can be more challenging to establish. Using a longitudinal behavioural dataset (2014-2021) collected on eastern water dragons (<em>Intellagama lesueurii</em>), we investigated whether various aspects of affiliative behaviour (1) were repeatable across years, (2) covaried with each other at the among-individual level, and (3) influenced individuals' fitness. In particular, we considered affiliative behaviours towards opposite-sex and same-sex conspecifics separately. We found that social traits were repeatable and covaried with each other similarly for both sexes. More notably, we found that male reproductive success was positively correlated with the number of female associates and the proportion of time spent with females, whilst females' reproductive success was not correlated with any of the measured social behaviour metrics. Overall, these findings suggest that selection may be acting differently on social behaviour of male and female eastern water dragons.</p>
Raw data for: Sex and population differences underlie variation in reproductive success in a warming environment
<p>Current rising temperatures are threatening biodiversity. It is therefore crucial to understand how climate change impacts male and female fertility and whether evolutionary responses can help in coping with heat stress. We use experimental evolution to study male and female fertility during real-time evolution of two historically differentiated populations of <em>Drosophila</em> <em>subobscura</em> under different thermal selection regimes for 23 generations. We aim to (1) tease apart sex-specific differences in fertility after exposure to warming conditions during development, (2) test whether thermal selection can enhance fertility under thermal stress, and (3) address the role of historically distinct genetic backgrounds. Contrary to expectations, heat stress during development had a higher negative impact on female fertility than on male fertility. We did not find clear evidence for enhanced fertility in males or females evolving under warming conditions. Population history had a clear impact on fertility response under thermal stress, particularly in males with those from lower latitudes presenting better performance than their higher latitude counterparts. We show that the impact of thermal stress on fertility varies between traits, sexes and genetic backgrounds. Incorporating these several levels of variation is crucial for a deeper understanding of how fertility evolves under climate change.</p>
Data for: Sex-specific transgenerational plasticity: Developmental temperatures of mothers and fathers have different effects on sons and daughters
<p>Each parent can influence offspring phenotypes via provisioning of the zygote or sex-specific DNA methylation. Transgenerational plasticity may therefore depend on environmental conditions experienced by each parent. We tested this hypothesis by conducting a fully factorial experiment across three generations of guppies (<em>Poecilia reticulata</em>), determining the effects of warm (28°C) and cold (21°C) thermal backgrounds of mothers and fathers on mass and length, and thermal performance (sustained [Ucrit] and sprint swimming speeds, citrate synthase and lactate dehydrogenase activities; 18, 24, 28, 32 and 36°C test temperatures) of sons and daughters. Offspring sex was significant for all traits except for sprint speed. Warmer mothers produced sons and daughters with reduced mass and length, and warmer fathers produced shorter sons. U<sub>crit</sub> of male offspring was greatest when both parents were raised at 28°C, and warmer fathers produced daughters with greater U<sub>crit</sub>. Similarly, warmer fathers produced sons and daughters with greater metabolic capacities. We show that thermal variation experienced by parents can modify offspring phenotypes, and that predicting the impacts of environmental change on populations would require knowledge of the thermal background of each mothers and fathers, particularly where sexes are spatially segregated.</p>
Sex differences in the behavioural traits across ontogenetic stages in a sexually-size dimorphic spider
<p><span>Selection acts differently on females and males due to differences in potential reproductive rates, driving the evolution of sex differences in traits, including growth and behaviour. Additionally, selection pressures vary during an individual's ontogeny, with growth being crucial in early developmental stages and reproduction during adulthood, leading to age- and sex-specific behavioural strategies. In this study, we investigated a sexually-size dimorphic spider, the raft spider (<em>Dolomedes fimbriatus</em>), where females are substantially larger than males. We repeatedly observed spiders from juvenile to adult stages, examining boldness, voracity towards prey, and probability to attack. Our findings revealed that females exhibited greater boldness, voracity, and probability to back-attack the simulated attacker compared to males. Notably, the observed behaviours changed during ontogeny, with sex differences in the magnitudes and directions of change, indicating distinct life history strategies between sexes. Moreover, we detected positive associations between body mass or age and behavioural traits, supporting a proposed positive feedback loop between assets and behaviour. While mass and age were not significant confounding predictors in the analyses of sex differences in behaviour, some collinearity was present between sex, mass, and age, so that their effects on behavioural differences between sexes cannot be conclusively disentangled. Repeatability of behaviours was low but significant for boldness and probability to attack, with similar estimates between sexes. These results underscore the importance of considering sex-specific life history strategies in behavioural trait studies. </span></p>
Data from: Sexual selection for extreme physical performance in a polygynous bird is associated with exceptional sex differences in oxygen carrying capacity
<p>In many animal species, males compete for access to fertile females. The resulting sexual selection leads to sex differences in morphology and behaviour, but may also have consequences for physiology. Pectoral sandpipers are an arctic breeding polygynous shorebird in which males perform elaborate displays around the clock and move over long distances to sample potential breeding sites. We examined the oxygen carrying capacity of pectoral sandpipers, measured as the volume percentage of red blood cells in blood (haematocrit, Hct). We found a remarkable sex difference in Hct levels, with males having much higher values (58.9 ± 3.8 SD) than females (49.8 ± 5.3 SD). While Hct values of male pectoral sandpipers are notable for being among the highest recorded in birds, the sex difference we report is unprecedented and more than double that of any previously described. We also show that Hct values declined after arrival to the breeding grounds in females, but not in males, suggesting that males maintain an aerobic capacity during the mating period equivalent to that during trans-hemispheric migration. We conclude that sexual selection for extreme physical performance in male pectoral sandpipers has led to exceptional sex differences in oxygen carrying capacity.</p>
Serum proteomic analysis of sex differences during an acute low back pain episode
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Emergence and return times in a colonial, cave-dwelling bat: age and sex differences driven by reproductive cycle
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Data for: Corticosteroid-binding globulin (SERPINA6) establishes postpubertal sex differences in rat adrenal development
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