Objective
Sperm competition is known to affect many aspects of animal behaviour and anatomy. In this proposal, I will examine how the threat of sperm competition is reflected in the complexity of male ejaculates, and in the rate of evolution of the components of this ejaculate. My core hypothesis is that loss of sperm competition will be reflected in ejaculates that are less complex (as they do not have to function in maximizing success in sperm competition) and evolve less quickly (as they are not driven by recurrent selection from male-male conflicts). Using D. wassermani and D. nannoptera, two polyandrous species, and D. acanthoptera, a monandrous species, of the less-known Drosophila nannoptera group, I will examine how the gene set involved with male reproduction alters between polyandrous and monandrous species, and compare the evolutionary rate of genes involved with male reproduction in the different species. This will involve a) Using 454 sequencing to establish EST sets for accessory glands and testes for each species, and establish genes involved with male reproduction in each species. b) Comparing EST set membership between monandrous and polyandrous species, and between polyandrous species. c) Examining the level of divergence of the subset of genes involved with male reproduction. I will specifically test: a) Whether certain genes involved with male reproduction are lost following transition to monandry, and associated loss of sperm competition. b) Whether the rate of positive selection in genes involved in male reproduction is lower in the lineage leading to D. acanthoptera, associated with reduction in the intensity of sexual conflict. c) Whether genes involved with male reproduction present in all species (core genes) evolve more slowly than genes present only in polyandrous species that are likely to function in sperm competition.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: https://op.europa.eu/en/web/eu-vocabularies/euroscivoc.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: https://op.europa.eu/en/web/eu-vocabularies/euroscivoc.
- medical and health sciences clinical medicine andrology
- natural sciences biological sciences biological behavioural sciences ethology
- natural sciences biological sciences genetics genomes
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Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
FP7-PEOPLE-IEF-2008
See other projects for this call
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Coordinator
L69 7ZX Liverpool
United Kingdom
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.