The evolution of sex-specific gene expression in polygenic traits.

Details

Serval ID
serval:BIB_326884F28A2F
Type
Article: article from journal or magazin.
Collection
Publications
Institution
Title
The evolution of sex-specific gene expression in polygenic traits.
Journal
Journal of evolutionary biology
Author(s)
Flintham E.
ISSN
1420-9101 (Electronic)
ISSN-L
1010-061X
Publication state
In Press
Peer-reviewed
Oui
Language
english
Notes
Publication types: Journal Article
Publication Status: aheadofprint
Abstract
Selection often favours different phenotypes in males and females, driving the evolu- tion of sex-specific genetic architectures that facilitate sexual dimorphism. Previous theory based on single-locus models has shown how such architecture can evolve through modifiers of gene expres- sion and allelic dominance in males and females. Here I consider the evolution of gene expression in polygenic traits experiencing sex-specific selection. In such traits, I find that sexual dimorphism evolves more readily through sex-specific gene amplification, whereby genes differ in their absolute expression levels between the sexes, than through the evolution of sex-specific dominance across loci, which requires strong sexual antagonism. Furthermore, I show that the type of genetic architecture that evolves through sex-specific amplification, namely the number and nature of sex-biased genes, is highly sensitive to the distance between optimal male and female trait values relative to the number of loci contributing to a trait, i.e, to the level of genetic redundancy for sexual dimor- phism. Together these results indicate that genetic architectures resulting from sex-specific selection are highly dependent on the genetic basis of the trait of interest, and that this creates challenges when interpreting current metrics of sexual antagonism.
Pubmed
Open Access
Yes
Create date
25/06/2025 11:41
Last modification date
26/06/2025 7:06
Usage data