Sperm variation within a single ejaculate affects offspring development in Atlantic salmon

Sammanfattning

It is generally believed that variation in sperm phenotype within a single ejaculate has no consequences for offspring performance, because sperm phenotypes are thought not to reflect sperm genotypes. We show that variation in individual sperm function within an ejaculate affects the performance of the resulting offspring in the Atlantic salmon Salmo salar. We experimentally manipulated the time between sperm activation and fertilization in order to select for sperm cohorts differing in longevity within single ejaculates of wild caught male salmon. We found that within-ejaculate variation in sperm longevity significantly affected offspring development and hence time until hatching. Whether these effects have a genetic or epigenetic basis needs to be further evaluated. However, our results provide experimental evidence for transgenerational effects of individual sperm function.

Nyckelord

gamete selection; epigenetics; haploid selection; sperm competition; fish

Publicerad i

Biology Letters
2014, volym: 10, nummer: 2
Utgivare: ROYAL SOC

SLU författare

• Petersson, Erik

  • Institutionen för akvatiska resurser (SLU Aqua), Sveriges lantbruksuniversitet
    

UKÄ forskningsämne

Evolutionsbiologi
Fisk- och akvakulturforskning

Publikationens identifierare

• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1098/rsbl.2013.1040

Permanent länk till denna sida (URI)

https://res.slu.se/id/publ/67416