Parthenogenetic Lines (parthenogenetic + line)

Distribution by Scientific Domains


Selected Abstracts


Cold tolerance in obligate and cyclical parthenogens of the peach-potato aphid, Myzus persicae

ECOLOGICAL ENTOMOLOGY, Issue 4 2004
Christoph Vorburger
Abstract., 1. Many aphids form mixed populations of cyclical and obligate parthenogens. This is puzzling, because all else being equal, obligate parthenogens should outcompete cyclical parthenogens due to the two-fold cost of sex. Yet cyclical parthenogens produce frost-resistant, diapausing eggs in autumn, while obligate parthenogens spend the winter as active stages. Frost resistance thus represents a short-term advantage to sexual reproduction mediated by winter temperatures, which may promote this coexistence. 2. Because obligate parthenogens overwinter as active stages, there may be selection for increased cold tolerance compared to cyclical parthenogens. This has the potential to gradually erode the advantage of sexually producing eggs. 3. Four obligately and four cyclically parthenogenetic lines of Myzus persicae (Sulzer) (Hemiptera: Aphididae) were collected from each of two areas differing in winter severity, and their survival after exposure to a severe experimental frost (14 h at ,9 °C), as well as their reproductive performance at a low (10 °C) and a high (20 °C) temperature were compared. 4. There was significant variation among lines in survival after the experimental frost, but this variation was neither related to their reproductive mode, nor to their area of origin. Similarly, neither reproductive mode nor origin had a significant effect on reproductive performance, independent of temperature. The average slope of the response to variation in temperature was also similar for both reproductive modes, despite the fact that slopes differed significantly among lines. 5. Within the limits of extrapolating from laboratory experiments, it is concluded that in M. persicae, the active stages of obligate parthenogens are not better adapted to cold temperatures than those of cyclical parthenogens. [source]


Ample genetic variation but no evidence for genotype specificity in an all-parthenogenetic host,parasitoid interaction

JOURNAL OF EVOLUTIONARY BIOLOGY, Issue 3 2010
C. SANDROCK
Abstract Antagonistic coevolution between hosts and parasites can result in negative frequency-dependent selection and may thus be an important mechanism maintaining genetic variation in populations. Negative frequency-dependence emerges readily if interactions between hosts and parasites are genotype-specific such that no host genotype is most resistant to all parasite genotypes, and no parasite genotype is most infective on all hosts. Although there is increasing evidence for genotype specificity in interactions between hosts and pathogens or microparasites, the picture is less clear for insect host,parasitoid interactions. Here, we addressed this question in the black bean aphid (Aphis fabae) and its most important parasitoid Lysiphlebus fabarum. Because both antagonists are capable of parthenogenetic reproduction, this system allows for powerful tests of genotype × genotype interactions. Our test consisted of exposing multiple host clones to different parthenogenetic lines of parasitoids in all combinations, and this experiment was repeated with animals from four different sites. All aphids were free of endosymbiotic bacteria known to increase resistance to parasitoids. We observed ample genetic variation for host resistance and parasitoid infectivity, but there was no significant host clone × parasitoid line interaction, and this result was consistent across the four sites. Thus, there is no evidence for genotype specificity in the interaction between A. fabae and L. fabarum, suggesting that the observed variation is based on rather general mechanisms of defence and attack. [source]


Isolation and characterization of microsatellite loci in the aphid species, Rhopalosiphum padi

MOLECULAR ECOLOGY RESOURCES, Issue 1-2 2001
Jean-Christophe Simon
Abstract Due to their properties for resolving patterns of population genetic structure, microsatellites are increasingly used in studies of breeding systems. Here, eight polymorphic microsatellite loci were isolated and characterized in the aphid Rhopalosiphum padi, in which populations show a mixture of cyclically and obligatory parthenogenetic lines. These loci were then applied to distinguish between 55 parthenogenetic lines of R. padi collected across France. Interestingly, they allowed to detect several copies of the same genotypes among the sample, confirming the great sensitivity of microsatellites and their usefulness in population genetic studies of parthenogenetic organisms. [source]