Female reproductive fluid and male seminal fluid: a non-gametic conflict for post-mating control.

Growing evidence shows that non-gametic components released by both males and females can significantly drive sperm competition outcomes. Seminal fluid (SF) was shown to influence paternity success by affecting rival males' sperm performance, and, in some species with male alternative reproductive tactics, to selectively decrease the fertilization success of males of the opposite tactic. Female reproductive fluid (FRF) has been proven to differentially influence ejaculates of different males and bias fertilization towards specific partners. Whether, and with what outcome, these two processes can intersect to influence sperm competition is still unknown. Here we explore this scenario in the grass goby (Zosterisessor ophiocephalus), a fish with territorial-sneaker reproductive tactics, where sneaker males can exploit the territorials' SF while penalizing territorial sperm performance with their own fluid. To test whether FRF can rebalance the ejaculate competition in favour of territorial males, we used in vitro fertilization with a SF mixture (territorial + sneaker), using increasing concentrations of FRF, to simulate the natural conditions that ejaculates encounter towards the eggs. Our findings revealed a differential effect of FRF on the different tactics' fertilization success, favouring territorial ejaculates, possibly through an attenuation of the detrimental effects of sneaker SF, and enabling females to regain control over the fertilization process.

Female reproductive fluid concentrations affect sperm performance of alternative male phenotypes in an external fertilizer.

There is growing evidence that the female reproductive fluid (FRF) plays an important role in cryptic female choice through its differential effect on the performance of sperm from different males. In a natural spawning event, the male(s) may release ejaculate closer or further away from the spawning female. If the relative spatial proximity of competing males reflects the female pre-mating preference towards those males, then favoured males will encounter higher concentrations of FRF than unpreferred males. Despite this being a common situation in many external fertilizers, whether different concentrations of FRF can differentially influence the sperm performance of distinct male phenotypes (favoured and unfavoured by the female) remains to be elucidated. Here, we tested this hypothesis using the grass goby (Zosterisessor ophiocephalus), a fish with distinct territorial-sneaker reproductive tactics and female pre-mating preference towards territorial males, that consequently mate in an advantaged position and whose sperm experience higher concentrations of FRF. Our findings revealed a differential concentration-dependent effect of FRF over sneaker and territorial sperm motility only at low concentrations (i.e. at the distance where sneakers typically ejaculate), with increasing FRF concentrations (i.e. close to the eggs) similarly boosting the sperm performance of both sneaker and territorial males. The ability to release sperm close to the eggs is a prerogative of territorials, but FRF can likewise advantage the sperm of those sneakers that are able to get closer, allowing flexibility in the direction of female post-mating choice.

epg5 knockout leads to the impairment of reproductive success and courtship behaviour in a zebrafish model of autophagy-related diseases.

BACKGROUND: Dysregulation of the autophagic flux is linked to a wide array of human diseases, and recent findings highlighted the central role of autophagy in reproduction, as well as an association between impairment of autophagy and behavioural disorders. Here we deepened on the possible multilevel link between impairment of the autophagic processes and reproduction at both the physiological and the behavioural level in a zebrafish mutant model. METHODS: Using a KO epg5 zebrafish line we analysed male breeding success, fertility rate, offspring survival, ejaculate quality, sperm and testes morphology, and courtship behaviour. To this aim physiological, histological, ultrastructural and behavioural analyses on epg5+/+ and mutant epg5-/- males coupled to WT females were applied. RESULTS: We observed an impairment of male reproductive performance in mutant epg5-/- males that showed a lower breeding success with a reduced mean number of eggs spawned by their WT female partners. The spermatogenesis and the ability to produce fertilising ejaculates were not drastically impaired in our mutant males, whereas we observed a reduction of their courtship behaviour that might contribute to explain their lower overall reproductive success. CONCLUSION: Collectively our findings corroborate the hypothesis of a multilevel link between the autophagic process and reproduction. Moreover, by giving a first glimpse on behavioural disorders associated to epg5 KO in model zebrafish, our results open the way to more extensive behavioural analyses, also beyond the reproductive events, that might serve as new tools for the molecular screening of autophagy-related multisystemic and neurodegenerative diseases.

Transgenerational effects and phenotypic plasticity in sperm and larvae of the sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus under ocean acidification.

In marine organisms, differing degree of sensitivity to ocean acidification (OA) is expected for each life stage, and disturbance at one stage can carry over into the following stage or following generation. In this study we investigated phenotypic changes of sperm and larvae of the sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus in response to different pH conditions (8.0, 7.7, 7.4) experienced by the parents during gametogenesis. In sperm from two-months exposed males, sperm motility, velocity, ATP content, ATP consumption and respiration rate were evaluated at three pH values of the activating medium (8.0, 7.7 and 7.4). Moreover, larvae from each parental group were reared at pH 8.0 and 7.7 for 20 days and larval mortality and growth were then assessed. Sperm motility and respiration rate were not affected either by exposure of males to low pH or by the post-activation pH. Sperm velocity did not differ among post-activation pH values in all sperm groups, but it decreased slower in sperm developed under acidified conditions, suggesting the presence of positive carryover effect on sperm longevity. This positive carryover effect of exposure of males to low pH values was highlighted also for the sperm ATP content, which was higher in these groups of sperm. ATP consumption rate was affected by post-activation pH with higher values at pH 8.0 in sperm from males maintained at control condition and pH 7.7 while the energy consumption appeared to be differently modulated at different experimental conditions. A negative carry over effect of OA was observed on survival of larvae from parents acclimated at pH 7.4 and additive negative effects of both parental and larval exposure to low pH can be suggested. In all groups of larvae, decreased somatic growth was observed at low rearing pH, thus larvae from parents maintained at low pH did not show an increased capability to cope with OA.

Black goby territorial males adjust their ejaculate's characteristics in response to the presence of sneakers.

In many species, males can rapidly adjust their ejaculate performance in response to changing levels of sperm competition, an ability that is probably mediated by seminal fluid adaptive plasticity. In the black goby, Gobius niger, territorial males attach viscous ejaculate trails to the nest roof, from which sperm are slowly released into the water during the long-lasting spawning events. Sneaker males release their sperm in the vicinity of the nest, and territorial males try to keep them at a distance by patrolling their territory. We show here that territorial males' ejaculate trails released a higher proportion of their sperm in the presence of a single sneaker, but this proportion decreased when there were three sneakers, an effect that is most likely mediated by a change in the seminal fluid composition. Field observations showed that when multiple sneaking attempts occurred, territorial males spent more time outside the nest, suggesting that ejaculation rate and territory defence are traded-off. Altogether, these results suggest that the adjustment of sperm release from the ejaculate may be strategic, guaranteeing a more continuous concentration of the territorial male's sperm in the nest, although at a lower level, when he is engaged in prolonged territory defence outside the nest.

Efficient clofilium tosylate-mediated rescue of POLG-related disease phenotypes in zebrafish.

The DNA polymerase gamma (Polg) is a nuclear-encoded enzyme involved in DNA replication in animal mitochondria. In humans, mutations in the POLG gene underlie a set of mitochondrial diseases characterized by mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) depletion or deletion and multiorgan defects, named POLG disorders, for which an effective therapy is still needed. By applying antisense strategies, ENU- and CRISPR/Cas9-based mutagenesis, we have generated embryonic, larval-lethal and adult-viable zebrafish Polg models. Morphological and functional characterizations detected a set of phenotypes remarkably associated to POLG disorders, including cardiac, skeletal muscle, hepatic and gonadal defects, as well as mitochondrial dysfunctions and, notably, a perturbed mitochondria-to-nucleus retrograde signaling (CREB and Hypoxia pathways). Next, taking advantage of preliminary evidence on the candidate molecule Clofilium tosylate (CLO), we tested CLO toxicity and then its efficacy in our zebrafish lines. Interestingly, at well tolerated doses, the CLO drug could successfully rescue mtDNA and Complex I respiratory activity to normal levels, even in mutant phenotypes worsened by treatment with Ethidium Bromide. In addition, the CLO drug could efficiently restore cardio-skeletal parameters and mitochondrial mass back to normal values. Altogether, these evidences point to zebrafish as a valuable vertebrate organism to faithfully phenocopy multiple defects detected in POLG patients. Moreover, this model represents an excellent platform to screen, at the whole-animal level, candidate molecules with therapeutic effects in POLG disorders.

Going beyond conventional parameters to unveil sperm quality in fish: the use of fibre optic technology to assess mitochondrial respiratory performance.

Sperm fertilisation success depends on both intrinsic quality and the interactions with the surrounding reproductive fluids. In several fish species, these interactions have a variable effect on sperm performance. Although specific responses to reproductive fluids may depend on intrinsic differences in sperm quality, variations in the traditionally recorded sperm functional traits do not fully account for the observed patterns. New methods to enhance the evaluation of sperm quality may prove to be valuable at both applied and theoretical levels, by improving the breeding protocol of reared species and the understanding of mating success in sperm competition contexts. Here we develop a fibre optic-based technique, also adequate for small ejaculate samples, to test the role of mitochondrial respiratory efficiency in deciphering sperm performance variability. We purposely used as model the grass goby, Zosterisessor ophiocephalus, a fish with guard-sneaker mating tactics where the sperm in each male tactic have similar intrinsic qualities (velocity, viability, ATP content), but sneakers' sperm exploit territorial males' seminal fuid, overall displaying better fertilization ability. We found that sperm differed in their mitochondrial respiratory efficiency, which was higher in sneakers' sperm compared to territorial ones. This result draws the attention to an indicator of sperm quality that might be helpful in disentangling the mechanisms driving sperm-reproductive fluid interactions.

Productive Results, Oxidative Stress and Contaminant Markers in European Sea Bass: Conventional vs. Organic Feeding.

In the present study European sea bass (Dicentrarchus labrax) subjected to two different diets (organic vs. conventional) were evaluated in terms of growing performances, oxidative stress, and contaminant markers. Growing performances were evaluated using biometric measures and condition factor (K), whereas insulin-like growth factor (IGF-I and IGF-II) levels were assessed trough Real-Time PCR analysis. For oxidative stress, immunohistochemical staining for 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG) and 4-hydroxy-2-nonenal (HNE) was performed, whereas total glutathione (GSH) in blood serum was determined by an enzymatic method adapted. Cytochrome P4501A (CYP1A) and melanomacrophage centers (MMCs) were evaluated as contaminant markers trough immunohistochemical and histochemical approaches, respectively. The growing performances showed a positive trend in both groups but a greater productivity in conventional fed fish compared to the organic ones. A significant higher expression of MMCs was observed in organic vs. conventional diet fed fish. Fillet analysis showed a higher MUFA content and a lower PUFAs n-6 content in organically fed sea bass indicating that diets with a content in fatty acids closer to that of wild fish will definitely affect the fatty acid profile of the fish flesh. On the other hand, the diet composition did not seem to affect neither the oxidative stress parameters (GSH, 8-OHdG, HNE) nor the CYP1A expression.

Female comparative mate choice influences strategic male nesting strategy in the peacock blenny Salaria pavo.

Emerging evidence endorses the idea that comparative instead of rational choice is widespread among species and mating contexts. In a comparative scenario the attractiveness of a male is not absolute but depends on the attractiveness of the other males to whom he is compared by females. Therefore, a male may benefit from the ability to choose the appropriate context that enhances his attractiveness. Here we test for the occurrence of strategic male nesting strategies in the peacock blenny, Salaria pavo, a fish species in which females evaluate potential mates by comparing males. Our results show that the large majority of males choose the context that maximize their attractiveness by nesting close to less attractive neighbours. Overall, we suggest that, in the peacock blenny, comparative, non-directional female choice is associated to strategic male nesting strategies and this scenario may contribute to the maintenance of genetic variability of male sexually-selected traits.

Sexual selection and the evolution of sperm morphology in sharks.

Post-copulatory sexual selection, and sperm competition in particular, is a powerful selective force shaping the evolution of sperm morphology. Although mounting evidence suggests that post-copulatory sexual selection influences the evolution of sperm morphology among species, recent evidence also suggests that sperm competition influences variation in sperm morphology at the intraspecific level. However, contradictory empirical results and limited taxonomic scope have led to difficulty in assessing the generality of sperm morphological responses to variation in the strength of sperm competition. Here, we use phylogenetically controlled analyses to explore the effects of sperm competition on sperm morphology and variance in sharks, a basal vertebrate group characterized by wide variation in rates of multiple mating by females, and consequently sperm competition risk. Our analyses reveal that shark species experiencing greater levels of sperm competition produce sperm with longer flagella and that sperm flagellum length is less variable in species under higher sperm competition risk. In contrast, neither the length of the sperm head and midpiece nor variation in sperm head and midpiece length was associated with sperm competition risk. Our findings demonstrate that selection influences both the inter- and intraspecific variation in sperm morphology and suggest that the flagellum is an important target of sexual selection in sharks. These findings provide important insight into patterns of selection on the ejaculate in a basal vertebrate lineage.

Inhibition of the deubiquitinase USP8 corrects a Drosophila PINK1 model of mitochondria dysfunction.

Aberrant mitochondrial dynamics disrupts mitochondrial function and contributes to disease conditions. A targeted RNA interference screen for deubiquitinating enzymes (DUBs) affecting protein levels of multifunctional mitochondrial fusion protein Mitofusin (MFN) identified USP8 prominently influencing MFN levels. Genetic and pharmacological inhibition of USP8 normalized the elevated MFN protein levels observed in PINK1 and Parkin-deficient models. This correlated with improved mitochondrial function, locomotor performance and life span, and prevented dopaminergic neurons loss in Drosophila PINK1 KO flies. We identified a novel target antagonizing pathologically elevated MFN levels, mitochondrial dysfunction, and dopaminergic neuron loss of a Drosophila model of mitochondrial dysfunction.

Seminal fluid enhances competitiveness of territorial males' sperm in a fish with alternative male reproductive tactics.

The most common adaptation to sperm competition in males is represented by an increase in the sperm number and/or quality released at mating, to raise their probability of egg fertilization. However, rapidly mounting evidence highlights that seminal fluid may directly influence the competitive fertilization success of a male by affecting either own and/or rival sperm performance. In the black goby, Gobius niger, an external fertilizer with guard-sneaker mating tactics and high sperm competition level, sneaker ejaculates contain less seminal fluid and more sperm, that are also of better quality, than those of territorial males. However, territorial males gain a higher paternity success inside natural nests. Here, we ask whether the seminal fluid can contribute to the reproductive success of territorial males by enhancing their sperm performance and/or by decreasing that of sneaker males. Using sperm and seminal fluid manipulation and in vitro fertilization tests, we found that own seminal fluid influences the velocity and fertilization ability of sperm only in territorial males, making them as fast as those of sneakers and with a similar fertilization rate. Moreover, both sneaker and territorial sperm remain unaffected by the seminal fluid of rival males. Thus, black goby males respond to the different level of sperm competition faced by differential allocation of sperm and non-sperm components of the ejaculate, with sneakers primarily investing in sperm of intrinsic high quality and territorial males relying on the effect of seminal fluid to increase the lower intrinsic quality of their sperm.

Females' sampling strategy to comparatively evaluate prospective mates in the peacock blenny Salaria pavo.

Emerging evidence suggests the occurrence of comparative decision-making processes in mate choice, questioning the traditional idea of female choice based on rules of absolute preference. In such a scenario, females are expected to use a typical best-of-n sampling strategy, being able to recall previous sampled males based on memory of their quality and location. Accordingly, the quality of preferred mate is expected to be unrelated to both the number and the sequence of female visits. We found support for these predictions in the peacock blenny, Salaria pavo, a fish where females have the opportunity to evaluate the attractiveness of many males in a short time period and in a restricted spatial range. Indeed, even considering the variability in preference among females, most of them returned to previous sampled males for further evaluations; thus, the preferred male did not represent the last one in the sequence of visited males. Moreover, there was no relationship between the attractiveness of the preferred male and the number of further visits assigned to the other males. Our results suggest the occurrence of a best-of-n mate sampling strategy in the peacock blenny.

Context-dependent evaluation of prospective mates in a fish.

Female choice is often assumed to be based on absolute preference, driven by a threshold value of mate attractiveness. However, increasing evidence suggests that females may instead perform a comparative evaluation of prospective mates, possibly incurring in violation of rational decision rules (e.g. independence from irrelevant alternative, IIA). A prototypical case is the 'asymmetrically dominated decoy' effect where the preference for a target option over a competitor is altered by the addition of an irrelevant alternative. Here, we test for this effect in the peacock blenny Salaria pavo. Females, in binary test (i.e. focal option dyad differing in body size and extension of a yellow spot), strongly preferred one of the options. The effect of decoys, asymmetrically dominating the focal options for either yellow spot extension or body size, varied according to the initially preferred trait and the decoy type. Indeed, the addition of a decoy caused a shift in preference only when the decoy exhibited the intermediate expression of the trait less preferred initially. By contrast, females did not modify their preference in the presence of the decoy for their preferred trait. Although females' evaluation was context-dependent, the violation of IIA was clearly observed only with respect to the initially less preferred trait. This does not exclude that females are in any case using comparative decision rules. Indeed, when faced with three alternatives, two of which are proportionally closer to each other than to the third one, they might not be able to discriminate among them, perceiving stimulus absolute magnitude.

Induction of brown cells in Venerupis philippinarum exposed to benzo(a)pyrene.

Benzo(a)pyrene is an important polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) commonly present in the marine environment and responsible for carcinogenic, teratogenic and mutagenic effects in various animal species. In the present study, we investigated by both histochemical and immunohistochemical approaches the effect of an acute exposure to different concentrations of B(a)P in the Manila clam Venerupis philippinarum. The general morphology of the different clam tissues, which was investigated histologically, evidenced a significant increase in the number of intestinal brown cells after B(a)P exposure. An increasing trend response to B(a)P was detected. The histochemical analysis for lipofuscin revealed the presence of lipofuscin-like substances inside the cytoplasm of intestinal brown cells. The same cells exhibited a PAS positivity and a reactivity to Schmorl's solution for melanin pigment. Moreover, intestinal brown cells exhibited an immunopositivity to HSP70 antibody confirming the increasing trend response to B(a)P detected by the histochemical analysis. Our results suggest that histological tissue changes resulting from exposure to B(a)P can be an useful marker in biomonitoring studies.

Behavioural and immunological responses to an immune challenge in Octopus vulgaris.

Behavioural and immunological changes consequent to stress and infection are largely unexplored in cephalopods, despite the wide employment of species such as Octopus vulgaris in studies that require their manipulation and prolonged maintenance in captivity. Here we explore O. vulgaris behavioural and immunological (i.e. haemocyte number and serum lysozyme activity) responses to an in vivo immune challenge with Escherichia coli lipopolysaccharides (LPS). Behavioural changes of immune-treated and sham-injected animals were observed in both sight-allowed and isolated conditions, i.e. visually interacting or not with a conspecific. Immune stimulation primarily caused a significant increase in the number of circulating haemocytes 4h after the treatment, while serum lysozyme activity showed a less clear response. However, the effect of LPS on the circulating haemocytes begins to vanish 24h after injection. Our observations indicate a significant change in behaviour consequent to LPS administration, with treated octopuses exhibiting a decrease of general activity pattern when kept in the isolated condition. A similar decrease was not observed in the sight-allowed condition, where we noticed a specific significant reduction only in the time spent to visually interact with the conspecific. Overall, significant, but lower, behavioural and immunological effects of injection were detected also in sham-injected animals, suggesting a non-trivial susceptibility to manipulation and haemolymph sampling. Our results gain importance in light of changes of the regulations for the use of cephalopods in scientific procedures that call for the prompt development of guidelines, covering many aspects of cephalopod provision, maintenance and welfare.

Tactic-specific differences in seminal fluid influence sperm performance.

Seminal fluid often makes up a large part of an ejaculate, yet most empirical and theoretical studies on sperm competition have focused on how sperm characteristics (number and quality) affect fertilization success. However, seminal fluid influences own sperm performance and may potentially influence the outcome of sperm competition, by also affecting that of rivals. As a consequence males may be expected to allocate their investment in both sperm and seminal fluid in relation to the potential level of competition. Grass goby (Zosterisessor ophiocephalus) is an external fertilizer with guard-sneaker mating tactics, where sperm competition risk varies according to the tactic adopted. Here, we experimentally manipulated grass goby ejaculates by separately combining sperm and seminal fluid from territorial and sneaker males. While sperm of sneaker and territorial males did not differ in their performance when they interacted with their own seminal fluid only, sperm of sneakers increased their velocity and fertilization rate in the presence of territorial males' seminal fluid. By contrast, sneaker males' seminal fluid had a detrimental effect on the performance of territorial males' sperm. Sperm velocity was unaffected by the seminal fluid of males employing the same tactic, suggesting that seminal fluid's effect on rival-tactic sperm is not based on a self/non-self recognition mechanism. Our findings show that cross interactions of sperm and seminal fluid may influence the fertilization success of competing ejaculates with males investing in both sperm and seminal fluid in response to sperm competition risk.

Body size correlates with fertilization success but not gonad size in grass goby territorial males.

In fish species with alternative male mating tactics, sperm competition typically occurs when small males that are unsuccessful in direct contests steal fertilization opportunities from large dominant males. In the grass goby Zosterisessor ophiocephalus, large territorial males defend and court females from nest sites, while small sneaker males obtain matings by sneaking into nests. Parentage assignment of 688 eggs from 8 different nests sampled in the 2003-2004 breeding season revealed a high level of sperm competition. Fertilization success of territorial males was very high but in all nests sneakers also contributed to the progeny. In territorial males, fertilization success correlated positively with male body size. Gonadal investment was explored in a sample of 126 grass gobies collected during the period 1995-1996 in the same area (61 territorial males and 65 sneakers). Correlation between body weight and testis weight was positive and significant for sneaker males, while correlation was virtually equal to zero in territorial males. That body size in territorial males is correlated with fertilization success but not gonad size suggests that males allocate much more energy into growth and relatively little into sperm production once the needed size to become territorial is attained. The increased paternity of larger territorial males might be due to a more effective defense of the nest in comparison with smaller territorial males.

One trait, many signals: different information on male quality is enclosed within the same trait in a blenny fish.

Colourful ornaments are traditionally evaluated as one trait. However, they could consist of several components, such as total size, colour intensity and extension, each possibly bearing its own message about one aspect of quality. Males of the blenny Salaria pavo exhibit a colourful head crest and solely care for eggs. During the breeding season, the head crest shows a yellow colouration, the intensity and relative extension of which are independent of crest size. Here, we show that: (1) carotenoids are responsible for the head crest yellow patch; (2) activating the immune system by injecting the bacterial antigen lipopolysaccharides affects both the intensity and extent of the yellow colouration; and (3) females assess males on the basis of colour patch expression. However, the response of the yellow patch to the immune challenge was dependent on head crest size. Indeed, males with a larger head crest reacted better to the simulated infection, sustaining a level of yellow patch close to pre-challenge size.

Sperm traits negatively covary with size and asymmetry of a secondary sexual trait in a freshwater crayfish.

In species where females mate promiscuously, the reproductive success of males depends both on their ability to acquire mates (pre-copulatory sexual selection) and ability of their ejaculates to outcompete those of other males (post-copulatory sexual selection). Sperm competition theory predicts a negative relationship between investment in body traits favouring mate acquisition (secondary sexual characters, SSCs) and investment in ejaculate size or quality, due to the inherent costs of sperm production. In contrast, the phenotype-linked fertility hypothesis posits that male fertilizing efficiency is reliably reflected by the phenotypic expression of male SSCs, allowing females to obtain direct benefits by selecting more ornamented males as copulation partners. In this study, we investigated the relationships between male SSCs and size and quality (viability and longevity) of ejaculates allocated to females in mating trials of the freshwater crayfish Austropotamobius italicus. We showed that the relative size of male weapons, the chelae, was negatively related to ejaculate size, and that chelae asymmetry, resulting from regeneration of lost chelipeds, negatively covaried with sperm longevity. Moreover, males allocated more viable sperm to mates from their own rather than different stream of origin. Our findings thus suggest that, according to sperm competition theory, pre-copulatory sexual selection for large weapons used in male fighting may counteract post-copulatory sperm competition in this crayfish species, and that investment in cheliped regeneration may impair ejaculate quality.