RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 IgE receptor polymorphism predicts divergent, sex-specific inflammatory modes and fitness costs in a wild rodent
JF bioRxiv
FD Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
SP 841825
DO 10.1101/841825
A1 Klara M. Wanelik
A1 Mike Begon
A1 Janette E. Bradley
A1 Ida M. Friberg
A1 Joseph A. Jackson
A1 Christopher H. Taylor
A1 Steve Paterson
YR 2019
UL http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2019/11/14/841825.abstract
AB Sexual dimorphism is widespread in the animal kingdom, with males and females differing in their physiology, morphology and behaviour. However, relatively little is known about the importance of sex for the expression of genotype in natural populations, particularly in the context of health and disease. We combine data on genotype, immune gene expression, infection incidence and pedigree of individuals in a wild population of field voles (Microtus agrestis). We identify a polymorphism in the Immunoglobulin E (IgE) receptor with sexually dimorphic effects on immune phenotype, health and, ultimately, fitness. While males with the polymorphism upregulate their pro-inflammatory response with a detrimental effect on their reproductive success, females upregulate their anti-inflammatory response, increasing their risk of infection, but with no apparent reproductive cost. Our work demonstrates the potential for the same genetic difference to have profoundly different consequences for the health and fitness of males and females in natural populations.