title: The impact of endosymbionts on the evolution of host sex-determination mechanisms.
abstract: The past years have revealed that inherited bacterial endosymbionts are important sources of evolutionary novelty for their eukaryotic hosts. In this review we discuss a fundamental biological process of eukaryotes influenced by bacterial endosymbionts: the mechanisms of sex determination. Because they are maternally inherited, several endosymbionts of arthropods, known as reproductive parasites, have developed strategies to convert non-transmitting male hosts into transmitting females through feminization of genetic males and parthenogenesis induction. Recent investigations have also highlighted that endosymbionts can impact upon host sex determination more subtly through genetic conflicts, resulting in selection of host nuclear genes resisting endosymbiont effects. Paradoxically, it is because of their selfish nature that reproductive parasites are such powerful agents of evolutionary change in their host sex-determination mechanisms. They might therefore represent excellent models for studying transitions between sex-determining systems and, more generally, the evolution of sex-determination mechanisms in eukaryotes.
authors.affiliation: Université de Poitiers, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) Unité Mixte de Recherche 6556 Ecologie, Evolution, Symbiose, 40 Avenue du Recteur Pineau, 86022 Poitiers, France. richard.cordaux@univ-poitiers.fr
authors.forename: Richard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Cordaux
authors.forename: Didier
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Bouchon
authors.forename: Pierre
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Grève
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D005075:Biological Evolution; D004171:Diploidy; D005260:Female; D005306:Fertilization; D006238:Haploidy; D040582:Inheritance Patterns; D033321:Isopoda / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology; D008297:Male; D010312:Parthenogenesis; D010641:Phenotype; D012730:Sex Chromosomes / Q000235:genetics; D019849:Sex Determination Processes; D012744:Sex Ratio; D013559:Symbiosis; D020577:Wolbachia / Q000235:genetics / Q000472:pathogenicity / Q000502:physiology