SERT gene polymorphisms are associated with risk-taking behaviour and breeding parameters in wild great tits.
J Exp Biol
; 221(Pt 4)2018 02 27.
Article
en En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-29361593
ABSTRACT
Individual differences in coping with potentially dangerous situations are affected by a combination of genetic and environmental factors. How genetic polymorphisms and behavioural variations are related to fitness is unknown. One of the candidate genes affecting a variety of behavioural processes, including impulsivity, anxiety and mood fluctuations in both humans and other vertebrates, is the serotonin transporter gene (SERT/SLC6A). The aim of this study was to assess an association between SERT genotypes and novelty-seeking and risk-taking behaviours as well as breeding parameters of great tits (Parus major) in a natural environment. We associated polymorphisms in the promoter exonic regions of the SERT gene with parental risk-taking-related behaviour and fitness traits. Our results show that (1) risk-taking behaviour in our great tit population is linked to single nucleotide polymorphisms in the SERT gene exon 3 and exon 8; (2) the genotype-behaviour associations are consistent with the presence of different stressors; and (3) polymorphisms in exon 8 could be associated with fitness-related traits, such as the start of egg-laying and hatching success. We showed for the first time that genetic variability of SERT plays an important role in shaping individual decision-making that affects fitness in a wild population. However, the results are based on one population and on the polymorphisms that are in a single gene. Therefore, replication studies are needed in order to confirm these preliminary results.
Palabras clave
Texto completo:
1
Banco de datos:
MEDLINE
Asunto principal:
Reproducción
/
Pájaros Cantores
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Polimorfismo de Nucleótido Simple
/
Proteínas Aviares
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Proteínas de Transporte de Serotonina en la Membrana Plasmática
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Genotipo
Tipo de estudio:
Etiology_studies
/
Prognostic_studies
/
Risk_factors_studies
Límite:
Animals
País/Región como asunto:
Europa
Idioma:
En
Revista:
J Exp Biol
Año:
2018
Tipo del documento:
Article
País de afiliación:
Estonia