Mother's mitochondria and optimal offspring sex ratio.
In certain cases, predicted by evolutionary theory of sex-allocation and confirmed by empirical evidence, animals adaptively change their progeny sex-ratio according to individual circumstances. Here we argue that a similar response of offspring sex-ratio must exist in relation to genetic variation of mothers' mitochondria, as a consequence of maternal inheritance of these organelles and of their influence on fitness resulting from their crucial role in metabolism. In fact, a mathematical analysis of evolutionary dynamics of sex-allocation mutants demonstrates that natural selection promotes an evolutionarily stable allocation policy where mothers with defective mitochondria generate only sons, while those with optimal mitochondria have female biased progenies.
Matessi
Carlo
C
Istituto di Genetica Molecolare, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, via Abbiategrasso 207, 27100, Pavia, Italy. matessi@igm.cnr.it
Saino
Nicola
N
D000818:Animals; D005075:Biological Evolution; D002455:Cell Division / Q000235:genetics; D005260:Female; D014644:Genetic Variation; D005828:Genetics, Population; D007558:Italy; D008297:Male; D008928:Mitochondria / Q000235:genetics*; D009154:Mutation / Q000235:genetics; D012098:Reproduction / Q000235:genetics; D012744:Sex Ratio