PEERING THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS AT A SEXUAL PARASITE: ARE AMAZON MOLLIES RED QUEENS?

Abstract.— The gynogenetic Amazon molly ( Poecilia formosa ) is a clonal, all-female lineage of livebearing fish that faces an unusual obstacle to evolutionary persistence. Sperm from heterospecific males (either sailfin, P. latipinna , or Atlantic, P. mexicana , mollies) is necessary to trigger embryogenesis. However, none of the male's genes are incorporated into the genome of the gynogenetic offspring. Some investigators have proposed that the evolution of male mate discrimination is a result of this cost, leading to a coevolutionary arms race between male avoidance of P. formosa and P. formosa attractiveness. Given that P. formosa successfully reproduces and has not yet gone extinct, it is clear there are mechanisms by which they attract the sexual attention of males. Although a Red Queen coevolutionary process in typical host/parasite systems has been shown to favor the persistence of sexual species, in this system an arms race has been invoked to explain the reverse. Here I present behavioral data supporting a more parsimonious scenario: that mechanisms of attraction in P. formosa are simply a consequence of its hybrid origin. Poecilia latipinna and P. mexicana males do not discriminate between gynogenetic P. formosa females and first generation sexual hybrid females, and females do not differ in agonistic behaviors associated with competition for mates. Both results contradict predictions from the Red Queen hypothesis. Therefore, coevolution is not necessary to explain the apparent evolutionary persistence of P. formosa.     

Differences in thermal tolerance in coexisting sexual and asexual mollies (Poecilia, Poeciliidae, Teleostei)

This study reports significant differences between the gynogenetic Amazon molly Poecilia formosa and one of its sperm hosts, and the sexual sailfin molly Poecilia latipinna in the critical temperatures at which individual fishes lost motion control. Based on these measurements, it is suggested that cold snaps occurring in winter, but not summer temperatures, can significantly change population composition of these closely related fishes by inflicting higher mortality on P. formosa .     

Limia vittata as host species for the Amazon molly: no evidence for sexual reproduction

DNA fingerprinting demonstrated no sexual reproduction of the gynogenetic Amazon molly Poecilia formosa with Limia vittata as host species, in contrast with a single report that claims to have found sexual reproduction with such matings.     

Monophyletic origin of multiple clonal lineages in an asexual fish (Poecilia formosa)

Despite the advantage of avoiding the costs of sexual reproduction, asexual vertebrates are very rare and often considered evolutionarily disadvantaged when compared to sexual species. Asexual species, however, may have advantages when colonizing (new) habitats or competing with sexual counterparts. They are also evolutionary older than expected, leaving the question whether asexual vertebrates are not only rare because of their 'inferior' mode of reproduction but also because of other reasons. A paradigmatic model system is the unisexual Amazon molly, Poecilia formosa, that arose by hybridization of the Atlantic molly, Poecilia mexicana, as the maternal ancestor, and the sailfin molly, Poecilia latipinna, as the paternal ancestor. Our extensive crossing experiments failed to resynthesize asexually reproducing (gynogenetic) hybrids confirming results of previous studies. However, by producing diploid eggs, female F(1) -hybrids showed apparent preadaptation to gynogenesis. In a range-wide analysis of mitochondrial sequences, we examined the origin of P. formosa. Our analyses point to very few or even a single origin(s) of its lineage, which is estimated to be approximately 120,000 years old. A monophyletic origin was supported from nuclear microsatellite data. Furthermore, a considerable degree of genetic variation, apparent by high levels of clonal microsatellite diversity, was found. Our molecular phylogenetic evidence and the failure to resynthesize the gynogenetic P. formosa together with the old age of the species indicate that some unisexual vertebrates might be rare not because they suffer the long-term consequences of clonal reproduction but because they are only very rarely formed as a result of complex genetic preconditions necessary to produce viable and fertile clonal genomes and phenotypes ('rare formation hypothesis').     

Male mate choice and sperm allocation in a sexual/asexual mating complex of Poecilia (Poeciliidae, Teleostei)

Male mate choice is critical for understanding the evolution and maintenance of sexual/asexual mating complexes involving sperm-dependent, gynogenetic species. Amazon mollies (Poecilia formosa) require sperm to trigger embryogenesis, but the males (e.g. Poecilia mexicana) do not contribute genes. Males benefit from mating with Amazon mollies, because such matings make males more attractive to conspecific females, but they might control the cost of such matings by providing less sperm to Amazon mollies. We examined this at the behavioural and sperm levels. P. mexicana males preferred to mate with, and transferred more sperm to conspecific females. However, if males mated with P. formosa, sperm was readily transferred. This underscores the importance of male choice in this system.     

Chromosomal evidence for laboratory synthesis of a triploid hybrid between the gynogenetic teleost Poecilia formosa and its host species

Cytogenetic analyses were performed on a triploid hybrid individual produced in the laboratory by mating Poecilia formosa , an all-female gynogenetic diploid species, with a normal male of melanistic ornamental Poecilia sphenops (black molly). Direct chromosome preparations revealed 69 (3n) chromosomes in the somatic complement. This cytogenetic observation in conjunction with the pigmentation phenotype leads us to conclude that occasional failure of sperm exclusion may result in the presence of triploid hybrids even in the natural habitats.     

Dietary niche overlap in sympatric asexual and sexual livebearing fishes Poecilia spp

The present study investigated the spatiotemporal patterns in trophic resource use in a system of a gynogenetic poeciliid fish, the Amazon molly Poecilia formosa, and its sexual congeners the sailfin molly Poecilia latipinna and the Atlantic molly Poecilia mexicana using gut contents analysis. No statistically significant differences in trophic resource use were found between sexual and gynogenetic species, but gut contents varied significantly across sites and over time. In addition, variation in trophic morphology (i.e. gut length) was significant across sites but not species, and laboratory experiments indicated that gut length is phenotypically plastic. Overall, trophic differentiation between coexisting asexual and sexual Poecilia appears to be minimal, and it is unlikely that niche differentiation contributes to a stable coexistence of the two reproductive forms.     

Evidence for a monophyletic origin of triploid clones of the Amazon molly, Poecilia formosa

Asexual reproduction in vertebrates is rare and generally considered an evolutionary dead end. Asexuality is often associated with polyploidy, and several hypotheses have been put forward to explain this relationship. So far, it remains unclear whether polyploidization in asexual organisms is a frequent or a rare event. Here we present a field study on the gynogenetic Amazon molly, Poecilia formosa. We used multilocus fingerprints and microsatellites to investigate the genetic diversity in 339 diploid and 55 triploid individuals and in 25 P. mexicana, its sexual host. Although multilocus DNA fingerprints found high clonal diversity in triploids, microsatellites revealed only two very similar clones in the triploids. Phylogenetic analysis of microsatellite data provided evidence for a monophyletic origin of the triploid clones of P. formosa. In addition, shared alleles within the triploid clones between the triploid and diploid genotypes and between asexual and sexual lineages indicate a recent origin of triploid clones in Poecilia formosa.     

Unusual triploid males in a microchromosome-carrying clone of the Amazon molly, Poecilia formosa

The Amazon molly, Poecilia formosa, is an all-female fish of hybrid origin which reproduces by gynogenesis, i.e. it depends on sperm of males of closely related species to trigger parthenogenetic development of the embryo. Therefore the offspring is clonal and identical to the mother. In rare cases the exclusion mechanism fails and paternal introgression occurs. This may result either in triploid offspring - if the whole haploid chromosome set of the sperm fuses with the diploid egg nucleus - or in siblings with microchromosomes - if only subgenomic amounts of paternal DNA are included. In one of our diploid, microchromosome-carrying laboratory stocks we observed eight triploid individuals which all developed into males. We investigated the mitotic and meiotic chromosomes, the synaptonemal complex (SC), and sperm production of these males, and compared them to males of the gonochoristic parental species (P. latipinna and P. mexicana) and their hybrids. This comparison revealed that P. formosa males are functional males with reduced effective fertility. They show a deviation from the typical 23 bivalents in the synaptonemal complexes as well as in diakinesis due to the triploid state. They produced offspring but only with gynogenetic Amazon molly females. This shows that the probably aneuploid sperm from P. formosa males can trigger parthenogenetic development of unreduced eggs.     

Cytogenetics of bisexual/unisexual species of Poecilia. I. C-bands, Ag-NOR polymorphisms, and sex chromosomes in three populations of Poecilia latipinna

Three populations of the North American cyprinodont fish Poecilia latipinna, considered to be one of the progenitor species of the gynogenetic unisexual P. formosa, were analyzed by C-banding and Ag-staining. C-bands were found to be polymorphic, and Ag-staining showed a high degree of variability in both the number and location of nucleolus organizer regions. The C-banding and Ag-staining patterns allow, to a certain extent, to distinguish individual specimens from each of these populations. Females of the three populations were found to have a heteromorphic chromosome pair, which was frequently identifiable with Giemsa staining and always after C-banding. This pair could be interpreted as sex chromosomes of the ZW/ZZ type.     

Stable inheritance of host species-derived microchromosomes in the gynogenetic fish Poecilia formosa

B chromosomes are additional, usually unstable constituents of the genome of many organisms. Their origin, however, is often unclear and their evolutionary relevance is not well understood. They may range from being deleterious to neutral or even beneficial. We have followed the genetic fate of B chromosomes in the asexual, all-female fish Poecilia formosa over eight generations. In this species, B chromosomes come in the form of one to three tiny microchromosomes derived from males of the host species that serve as sperm donors for this gynogenetic species. All microchromosomes have centromeric heterochromatin but usually only one has a telomere. Such microchromosomes are stably inherited, while the telomereless are prone to be lost in both the soma and germline. In some cases the stable microchromosome carries a functional gene lending support to the hypothesis that the B chromosomes in P. formosa could increase the genetic diversity of the clonal lineage in this ameiotic organism and to some degree counteract the genomic decay that is supposed to be connected with the lack of recombination.     

Effect of Cytochalasin B on Eggs of Atlantic Salmon and Rainbow Trout

Cytochalasin B action has been investigated in polyploidisation and gynogenesis in Atlantic salmon and rainbow trout. Solutions of 10, 20, 30 and 50 mg/1 were used to treat eggs from 35 h° to the 2-, 4- and 8-cell stages for rainbow trout, from 35 h° to the 2- and 4-cell stages, and 50 h° to the 8-cell stage for salmon. Survival rate was low in all treated groups. Low frequencies of polyploid and gynogenetic individuals were observed in embryos and alevins by means of two methods: DNA analysis by flow cytometry and chromosome counting. All polyploids observed were triploids without evidence of mosaicism. A few spontaneous diploid gynogenetic rainbow trout were registrated, as well as spontaneous triploid salmon, in controls.     

Female sperm limitation in natural populations of a sexual/asexual mating complex (Poecilia latipinna, Poecilia formosa)

In sperm-dependent sexual/asexual mating systems, male mate choice is critical for understanding the mechanisms behind apparent stability observed in natural populations. The gynogenetic Amazon molly (Poecilia formosa) requires sperm from sexual males (e.g. Poecilia latipinna) to trigger embryogenesis, but inheritance is strictly maternal. Consequently, males should try to avoid or reduce the cost of mating with asexuals. We investigated male mate choice by documenting the presence of sperm in natural populations and found that a higher proportion of sexual females had sperm than asexuals. In addition, among those females that had sperm, sexuals had more sperm than asexuals. Our results hint at a role for male mate choice as a stabilizing factor in such systems.     

Turbidity affects association behaviour in male Poecilia latipinna

Male association preferences in a bisexual‐unisexual species complex were studied in clear and turbid environments. In south and central Texas, where the gynogenetic sexual‐parasite Poecilia formosa lives syntopically with Poecilia latipinna as its sexual host species, association times of P. latipinna males with conspecific sexual and heterospecific asexual females in clear and turbid water were measured sequentially. Turbidity had an influence on male mate association behaviour. Males spent less time with any kind of female stimulus in turbid water. There was no preference for conspecific sexual females, either in turbid water or under clear conditions. Also, origin of males and acclimatization to turbid water had no effect. How turbidity as a source of visual noise might affect communication among individuals and how this environmental factor might contribute to the stability of this sexual‐asexual mating complex in nature are discussed.     

烟粉虱两种寄生蜂生物学特性及寄主竞争关系研究

室内比较了寄生烟粉虱Bemisia tabaci的两种寄生蜂——丽蚜小蜂Encarsia formosa和浅黄恩蚜小蜂En. sophia的生物学特性,并研究了以烟粉虱为寄主时两种寄生蜂间的竞争关系。结果表明：两者的后足胫节长度间无显著差异。浅黄恩蚜小蜂的产卵器及卵均长于丽蚜小蜂的,但浅黄恩蚜小蜂的待产卵量显著少于丽蚜小蜂。浅黄恩蚜小蜂检测寄主所花时间短于丽蚜小蜂,但检查圈数显著多于丽蚜小蜂,产卵时间以丽蚜小蜂所花时间为多。以4龄初期的烟粉虱为寄主时,丽蚜小蜂的卵期为48 h,而浅黄恩蚜小蜂24 h即完成卵期的发育。后者的蛹历期也显著短于丽蚜小蜂的蛹历期。丽蚜小蜂由卵到成虫的总发育历期比浅黄恩蚜小蜂的要长72 h左右。一头丽蚜小蜂与一头浅黄恩蚜小蜂组合后的总产卵量为14.0粒,略高于两头丽蚜小蜂组合的总产卵量（10.2粒）,显著高于两头浅黄恩蚜小蜂组合的产卵量（9.5粒）;两种蜂组合的处理中被寄生寄主体内的着卵量为1.73粒,显著高于单独一种蜂组合中被寄生寄主的着卵量,后两者分别为1.29和1.39粒。在寄主竞争情况下,在被两种蜂均寄生的寄主体内丽蚜小蜂和浅黄恩蚜小蜂产入的卵量分别为1.21和1.43粒,显著高于仅被一种蜂寄生的寄主体内的对应蜂种的卵量,后者分别为1.06和1.19粒。结果提示两种蜂均能识别对方的存在,且浅黄恩蚜小蜂表现出更强的竞争能力。     

Using video playbacks to study visual communication in a marine fish, Salaria pavo

Video playbacks have been successfully applied to the study of visual communication in several groups of animals. However, this technique is controversial as video monitors are designed with the human visual system in mind. Differences between the visual capabilities of humans and other animals will lead to perceptually different interpretations of video images. We simultaneously presented males and females of the peacock blenny, Salaria pavo, with a live conspecific male and an online video image of the same individual. Video images failed to elicit appropriate responses. Males were aggressive towards the live male but not towards video images of the same male. Similarly, females courted only the live male and spent more time near this stimulus. In contrast, females of the gynogenetic poecilid Poecilia formosa showed an equal preference for a live and video image of a P. mexicana male, suggesting a response to live animals as strong as to video images. We discuss differences between the species that may explain their opposite reaction to video images. Copyright 2000 The Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour.     

人工雌核发育鲢的遗传多样性及异源遗传物质整入的RAPD分析

运用RAPD技术对连续二代人工雌核发育鲢的遗传多样性及异源遗传物质的整入进行了分析 ,结果表明 :一代雌核发育鲢 ,个体间遗传相似度为 0 94 5— 0 995 6 ,多样性指数为 0 175 ;二代雌核发育鲢 ,个体间遗传相似度为0 96 15— 1 0 0 ,平均为 0 985 2 ,多样性指数为 0 0 6 2。研究揭示经过连续二代人工雌核发育后 ,其遗传多样性明显减少 ,种质进一步纯化。通过对雌核发育鲢二代、亲本鲢和雄鲤的RAPD扩增比较 ,发现雌核发育鲢含有少数与父本相同的特异DNA扩增带 ,而亲本鲢没有 ,在基因水平上表明雌核发育鲢整入了雄鲤的遗传物质     

组织移植对银鲫不同雌核发育系的遗传监测

采用脾移植实验对银鲫3个不同的雌核发育系进行了遗传分析。在3个同系移植的组合中,移植物被接受的个体数平均达95%,表明同一雌核发育系的大多数个体具有一致的基因型。在不同雌核发育系间的移植,移植物在7—14天被排斥(21—30℃)。从而用组织移植证明这些雌核发育系是存在的,并与遗传标记所鉴别的结果一致。文中对同系移植中出现少数排斥现象的原因进行了讨论。       

Breeding Value and Variance Component Estimation from Data Containing Inbred Individuals: Application to Gynogenetic Families in Common Carp (Cyprinus Carpio L.)

Under gynogenetic reproduction, offspring receive genes only from their dams and completely homozygous offspring are produced within one generation. When gynogenetic reproduction is applied to fully inbred individuals, homozygous clone lines are produced. A mixed model method was developed for breeding value and variance component estimation in gynogenetic families, which requires the inverse of the numerator relationship matrix. A general method for creating the inverse for a population with unusual relationships between animals is presented, which reduces to simple rules as is illustrated for gynogenetic populations. The presence of clones in gynogenetic populations causes singularity of the numerator relationship matrix. However, clones can be regarded as repeated observations of the same genotype, which can be accommodated by modifying the incidence matrix, and by considering only unique genotypes in the estimation procedure. Optimum gynogenetic sib family sizes for estimating heritabilities and estimates of their accuracy were derived and compared to those for conventional full-sib designs. This was done by means of a deterministic derivation and by stochastic simulation using Gibbs sampling. Optimum family sizes were smallest for gynogenetic families. Only for low heritabilities, there was a small advantage in accuracy under the gynogenetic design.     

草鱼雌核发育后代不同群体的微卫星遗传分析及指纹识别

以紫外线灭活的团头鲂精子激活草鱼卵子,冷休克抑制第二极体排出的方法诱导出长江水系优良F2代草鱼减数雌核发育子代。在后代中不仅存在雌核发育后代,还存在草鲂杂交后代,雌核发育后代的体型与草鱼一致,而草鲂杂交后代的体型介于草鱼与团头鲂之间。Partec CyFlow倍性分析仪测定结果显示:普通草鱼与雌核发育草鱼的相对DNA含量分别为23.01和22.72,二者的DNA含量接近;而高体型子代的相对DNA含量为25.38,介于草鱼与团头鲂（DNA含量28.21）之间,属于草鲂杂交后代。选取17个微卫星标记对草鱼群体、雌核发育草鱼群体和草鲂杂交后代的遗传多样性进行了检测,共检测出59个等位基因,其中43.18个有效等位基因。草鱼对照群体、草鲂杂交后代和雌核发育草鱼群体的平均等位基因依次为3.57、2.86和2.79,平均有效等位基因依次为2.93、2.37和1.96,平均期望杂合度在依次为0.6502、0.5573和0.3775,多态信息含量（PIC）平均值依次为0.5738、0.4649和0.3791。与草鱼对照群体相比,雌核发育草鱼群体的遗传多样性显著下降,表明通过减数雌核发育方法可获得纯合性较高的草鱼个体。构建了草鱼后代不同群体的DNA指纹模式图,筛选到不同群体的9个特异微卫星标记,为草鱼优良群体的选育提供了基础资料。