Abstract
BackgroundFor Anopheline mosquitoes, the vectors of human malaria, genetic variation in male reproductive success can have important consequences for any control strategy based on the release of transgenic or sterile males.MethodsA quantitative genetics approach was used to test whether there was a genetic component to variation in male reproductive success in a laboratory population of Anopheles gambiae. Swarms of full sibling brothers were mated with a fixed number of females and their reproductive success was measured as (1) proportion of ovipositing females, (2) proportion of ovipositing females that produced larvae, (3) proportion of females that produced larvae, (4) number of eggs laid per female, (5) number of larvae per ovipositing female and (6) number of larvae per female.ResultsThe proportion of ovipositing females (trait 1) and the proportion of ovipositing females that produced larvae (trait 2) differed among full sib families, suggesting a genetic basis of mating success. In contrast, the other measures of male reproductive success showed little variation due to the full sib families, as their variation are probably mostly due to differences among females. While age at emergence and wing length of the males were also heritable, they were not associated with reproductive success. Larger females produced more eggs, but males did not prefer such partners.ConclusionThe first study to quantify genetic variation for male reproductive success in A. gambiae found that while the initial stages of male reproduction (i.e. the proportion of ovipositing females and the proportion of ovipositing females that produced larvae) had a genetic basis, the overall reproductive success (i.e. the mean number of larvae per female) did not.
Highlights
For Anopheline mosquitoes, the vectors of human malaria, genetic variation in male reproductive success can have important consequences for any control strategy based on the release of transgenic or sterile males
The past failures of releasing sterilized males [3,4] and a growing awareness of the importance of understanding male reproductive success have led to repeated calls for addressing this neglected area in mosquito biology [5,6]
How often males mate in the field is unknown, but laboratory studies have found substantial variation in male reproductive success, with many males failing to mate while others mate several times [18,19]
Summary
For Anopheline mosquitoes, the vectors of human malaria, genetic variation in male reproductive success can have important consequences for any control strategy based on the release of transgenic or sterile males. Given that any control programme will most likely release transgenic males, the success of such a strategy depends on the reproductive fitness of these individuals. The past failures of releasing sterilized males [3,4] and a growing awareness of the importance of understanding male reproductive success have led to repeated calls for addressing this neglected area in mosquito biology [5,6]. The mosquitoes that vector human malaria, the Anophelines, tend to mate in swarms that can vary from twenty to thousands of individuals and are usually extremely malebiased [7,8]. Anopheles stephensi males can inseminate up to four females over two nights [19] and A. gambiae males can inseminate up to 10 females per night [20]
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