Exposure to female olfactory cues hastens reproductive ageing and increases mortality when mating in male mice.
Proc Biol Sci
; 291(2017): 20231848, 2024 Feb 28.
Article
en En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-38412966
ABSTRACT
Theories of ageing predict that investment in reproduction will trade-off against survival and later-life reproduction. Recent evidence from invertebrates suggests that just perceiving cues of a potential mate's presence can reduce lifespan, particularly in males, and that activation of neuroendocrine reward pathways associated with mating can alleviate these effects. Whether similar effects occur in vertebrates remains untested. We tested whether exposure to olfactory cues from the opposite sex would influence mortality and reproductive senescence in male mice. We observed that males exposed to female olfactory cues from middle- to old age (from 10 to 24 months of age) showed reduced late-life fertility, irrespective of whether they had also been allowed to mate with females earlier in life. Males that were exposed to female odours in conjunction with mating also showed an increased mortality rate across the exposure period, indicating that olfactory cues from females can increase male mortality in some environments. Our results show that exposure to female odours can influence reproductive ageing and mortality in male mice, highlighting that sensory perception of mates may be an important driver of life-history trade-offs in mammals.
Palabras clave
Texto completo:
1
Banco de datos:
MEDLINE
Asunto principal:
Conducta Sexual Animal
/
Señales (Psicología)
Límite:
Animals
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Proc Biol Sci
Asunto de la revista:
BIOLOGIA
Año:
2024
Tipo del documento:
Article
País de afiliación:
Nueva Zelanda