Premium
Differential evolution of lifespan and fecundity between asexual and sexual females in a benign environment
Author(s) -
Smith Hilary A.,
Snell Terry W.
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
international review of hydrobiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.524
H-Index - 52
eISSN - 1522-2632
pISSN - 1434-2944
DOI - 10.1002/iroh.201301711
Subject(s) - fecundity , biology , asexuality , asexual reproduction , evolutionary biology , zoology , ecology , demography , human sexuality , population , sociology , gender studies
Here we report one of the first investigations of evolvability of lifespan and reproduction in metazoans, examining both extrinsic and intrinsic factors. We tested effects on senescence of an environmental variable (simulated lake hydroperiod, the length of time an aquatic habitat is inundated), female reproductive physiology (asexual females that reproduce by ameiosis, vs. sexual females reproducing by meiosis), and time in a benign culture environment (minimal, if any, external mortality factors). To do this we established chemostat cultures of the rotifer Brachionus plicatilis s.s., and maintained the cultures for 385 days. Hydroperiod alone, or in interaction with the effects of reproductive physiology and time in the benign environment, had no significant effect on the rate of aging. Yet combining animals from both ephemeral and permanent hydroperiods revealed a 26% increase in asexual female lifespan across seasons (23% decrease in the rate of aging) and a 56% increase in asexual fecundity, suggesting that maintenance in benign laboratory conditions leads to slower aging. The relative stasis of traits for sexual in contrast to asexual females implies a role of reproductive physiology on evolvability. In addition we found a positive correlation between fecundity and lifespan, suggesting an absence of trade‐offs in these life history traits in the benign laboratory environment.