Journal ArticleDOI
Drosophila melanogaster seminal fluid can protect the sperm of other males
TLDR
It is suggested that residual seminal fluid inside females could benefit the sperm of subsequent mates, affecting the outcome of sperm competition and influencing the evolution of ejaculates and mating systems.Abstract:
Summary
1Many internally-fertilizing animals produce seminal fluid which is transferred along with sperm during mating. Seminal fluid typically contains a diverse range of chemicals that coordinate sperm storage, moderate sperm motility, provide advantages in sexual selection and influence female physiology.
2Seminal fluid is well-studied in Drosophila melanogaster, a species in which it has been suggested to ‘incapacitate’ the sperm of rival males (e.g. by killing them) and thereby provide an advantage in sperm competition. This hypothesis has been tested several times over many years, but different studies have yielded conflicting conclusions. Here, I use fluorescent staining to directly measure the effects of D. melanogaster seminal fluid on the survival of sperm from the same male or from a rival. The results suggest that seminal fluid improves sperm survival, even if the sperm are from a different male. This study therefore provides strong evidence that seminal fluid does not kill rival sperm, and instead can actually protect them. This study also tested whether chemicals in the female reproductive tract harm sperm as in another Drosophila species, but found no evidence of this.
3These findings suggest that residual seminal fluid inside females could benefit the sperm of subsequent mates, affecting the outcome of sperm competition and influencing the evolution of ejaculates and mating systems.read more
Citations
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Journal ArticleDOI
Insect seminal fluid proteins: identification and function.
TL;DR: Recent identification of insect SFPs is reviewed and the multiple roles these proteins play in the postmating processes of female insects are discussed.
Journal ArticleDOI
Resolving mechanisms of competitive fertilization success in Drosophila melanogaster.
Mollie K. Manier,John M. Belote,Kirstin S. Berben,David Novikov,Will T. Stuart,Scott Pitnick +5 more
TL;DR: Sperm showed more mobility within the female storage organs than expected, with those from the most recent copulation displacing sperm from previous males; however, sperm viability remained consistent over long-term storage and each male's sperm was equally competitive in fertilizing the female's eggs.
Journal ArticleDOI
Sperm wars and the evolution of male fertility
TL;DR: It is argued that future research must consider sperm and seminal fluid components of the ejaculate as a functional unity, and that research at the genomic level will identify the genes that ultimately control male fertility.
Journal ArticleDOI
The seminal symphony: how to compose an ejaculate.
TL;DR: Assessment of the increasing evidence that considering ejaculate composition as a whole (and potential trade-offs among ejaculate components) has important consequences for predictions about male reproductive investment and female responses to ejaculates details how social and environmental effects on ejaculates have potentially far-reaching fitness consequences for both sexes.
Journal ArticleDOI
Protein-specific manipulation of ejaculate composition in response to female mating status in Drosophila melanogaster
TL;DR: The hypothesis that males can adaptively tailor the composition of proteins in the ejaculate, allowing a male to take advantage of the fecundity-stimulating effects of the previous male's ovulin, yet maintaining investment in sex peptide is supported.
References
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Journal ArticleDOI
Male seminal fluid proteins are essential for sperm storage in Drosophila melanogaster.
Uyen Tram,Mariana F. Wolfner +1 more
TL;DR: Transgenic Drosophila melanogaster males deficient in the seminal fluid proteins derived from the accessory gland (Acps) are used to investigate the role of these proteins in the fate of sperm transferred to females during mating.
Journal ArticleDOI
Drosophila female sexual behavior induced by sterile males showing copulation complementation
Lei Xue,Markus Noll +1 more
TL;DR: Fertility of sperm from paired males can be restored by accessory gland products of spermless males in "copulation complementation" experiments, which may have important implications for the role of sexual behavior in evolution and for the treatment of male sexual dysfunction in humans.
Journal ArticleDOI
Ejaculate esterase 6 and initial sperm use by female Drosophila melanogaster
TL;DR: The rate of sperm release is closely related to the level of esterase 6 activity, suggesting that this seminal fluid enzyme is involved in sperm motility.
Journal ArticleDOI
Morphology and functions of the human seminal vesicle
Gerhard Aumüller,Alessandro Riva +1 more
TL;DR: The seminal vesicles originate in embryos of about 58 mm crown-rump-length from the Wolffian duct under the influence of testosterone and form a functional unit that develops slowly until the onset of puberty.
Journal ArticleDOI
Identification and characterization of the major Drosophila melanogaster mating plug protein.
Oliver Lung,Mariana F. Wolfner +1 more
TL;DR: It is reported that an abundant autofluorescent protein made by the Drosophila melanogaster male's ejaculatory bulb is a major constituent of the posterior region of the mating plug.