The Role of Reproduction (Part 8)

Mammals: Pregnancy

Fertilization and Placentation

1st meiotic division and release of polar body just before ovulation The 2nd meiotic division begins not complete until fertilization Sperm capacitation occurs in reproductive tract necessary for the acrosome enzymes to bore a hole in the egg to allow fertilization Fertilization occurs in the fallopian tube

Human Chorionic Gonadotrophin Levels in Early Pregnancy

In the Mare

Fertilization occurs I the oviduct The embryo migrates into the uterus by day 5 or 6 o Can flush embryos at this stage for embryo transfer to recipient mare

The End of Pregnancy: How is Birth Triggered?

Increased estrogen/progesterone ratio + increased placental corticotrophin releasing hormone Uterine contractions start, increasing pressure on the cervix Afferent input from the cervix to the hypothalamus increases release of oxytocin from the posterior pituitary Oxytocin increases uterine contractions further, establishing a positive reinforcement cycle that can only be resolved by expulsion of the uterine contents

Determinants of Reproductive Success

Inbreeding avoidance Parental care o Parenting cues o Kinship recognition

Inbreeding Avoidance
Inbreeding results in increased rates of expression of recessive alleles, some of which may be harmful

Outbreeding
Generates new gene combinations/interactions resulting in hybrid vigor

The Role of Parental Care

Individuals promote the spread of their own genes over those of competitors Adults defend and nourish offspring, often sacrificing themselves in the process

But they avoid helping non-relatives: o Guard mate against other sexual liaisons o Distinguish their own offspring from unrelated young Parenting is limited to relatively few species Parenting behaviour is dependent on mating systems o One mate (monogamy): some birds and mammals o Many mates (polygamy): most animals, including many primates Mating system with gender specificity: o Monogamy: biparental care Not practiced by insects, reptiles, or amphibians Practiced by some fish (mouth brooders) Practiced by only ~3% of mammals In monogamous species, males and females have similar roles in parenting. Therefore, both males and females are subjected to similar selection pressures o Uniparental Care Associated with polygamous species Polygamy (by either males or females) drives the selection of sexual traits Males and females have less similar sex roles than in monogamous species Therefore selection pressures are different o Female Parental Care Practiced by >95% of mammalian species Male polygamy because Female only receptive occasionally Males sexually active always Females not receptive during pregnancy Male-biased operational sex ratio Female choice on male ornamentation Male weapons to gain access to females males compete strongly for mates More pronounced female secondary traits Ornaments and weapons

 o Male

Female-biased operational sex ratio Male parental Parental Care Rarer than female parental care. Females focus on producing eggs Female polygamy occurs because: Males become the limiting resource in reproduction Therefore females compete more strongly over mates Rules are reversed for female parental care ~60 fish species known to exhibit male parental care sticklebacks, sunfish, some mouth brooders

Parenting Cues
Environmental/Behavioural o Photoperiod o Hormonal Chemical o Olfactory o Hormonal Visual Auditory Kin-recognition mechanisms

Paternal Kin-Recognition Mechanism

According to Darwinian behavioural rule: a juvenile is yours if you frequently mated with and guarded its mother when in heat But this is observational rule may not hold in all circumstances Direct phenotypic cues (phenotype matching) o Smell (olfactory cue) o Appearance (visual cues)