Affiliation
Univ Arizona, Dept Ecol & Evolutionary BiolIssue Date
2018-09Keywords
sexvolvocine green algae
multicellularity
ancestral state reconstruction
anisogamy
sexual dimorphism
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UNIV CHICAGO PRESSCitation
Erik R. Hanschen, Matthew D. Herron, John J. Wiens, Hisayoshi Nozaki, and Richard E. Michod, "Multicellularity Drives the Evolution of Sexual Traits," The American Naturalist 192, no. 3 (September 2018): E93-E105, https://doi.org/10.1086/698301Journal
AMERICAN NATURALISTRights
© 2018 by The University of Chicago. All rights reserved.Collection Information
This item from the UA Faculty Publications collection is made available by the University of Arizona with support from the University of Arizona Libraries. If you have questions, please contact us at repository@u.library.arizona.edu.Abstract
From the male peacock's tail plumage to the floral displays of flowering plants, traits related to sexual reproduction are often complex and exaggerated. Why has sexual reproduction become so complicated? Why have such exaggerated sexual traits evolved? Early work posited a connection between multicellularity and sexual traits such as anisogamy (i.e., the evolution of small sperm and large eggs). Anisogamy then drives the evolution of other forms of sexual dimorphism. Yet the relationship between multicellularity and the evolution of sexual traits has not been empirically tested. Given their extensive variation in both multicellular complexity and sexual systems, the volvocine green algae offer a tractable system for understanding the interrelationship of multicellular complexity and sex. Here we show that species with greater multicellular complexity have a significantly larger number of derived sexual traits, including anisogamy, internal fertilization, and secondary sexual dimorphism. Our results demonstrate that anisogamy repeatedly evolved from isogamous multicellular ancestors and that anisogamous species are larger and produce larger zygotes than isogamous species. In the volvocine algae, the evolution of multicellularity likely drives the evolution of anisogamy, and anisogamy subsequently drives secondary sexual dimorphism. Multicellularity may set the stage for the overall diversity of sexual complexity throughout the Tree of Life.Note
12 month embargo; published online: 10 July 2018ISSN
0003-01471537-5323
PubMed ID
30125231DOI
10.1086/698301Version
Final published versionSponsors
National Aeronautics and Space Administration [NNX13AH41G, NNX15AR33G]; National Institutes of Health [GM084905]; National Science Foundation [MCB-1412395, DEB-1457701]; Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology (MEXT)/Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) [KAKENHI 15K14590, 16H02518]Additional Links
https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/10.1086/698301ae974a485f413a2113503eed53cd6c53
10.1086/698301
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