Experimental evolution of selfing and outcrossing in C. elegans
Le 12 Juin 2015
11h Grande salle de réunion du CEFE - 1e étage, aile C
Henrique Teotonio
Institut de Biologie ENS
Abstract: Selfing is a common reproduction mode of animals and plants, even though it is generally expected to limit adaptation to novel environments. Using evolution experiments in the male-hermaphrodite nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, I will show that reproductive assurance can lead to evolutionary transitions from predominant outcrossing to predominant selfing, but only when populations have not adapted to the environments where outcrossing was once restricted to them. I will further show that the stability of partial selfing, in the face of increased male performance, may be mostly due to the evolution of developmental resource allocation towards the hermaphroditic function (i.e., self-spermatogenesis), instead of evolution of a sexual conflict.
Time permitting, I will address the population genetic consequences of varying selfing rates in the maintenance of genetic diversity and inbreeding depression.
Contact Louis-Miguel Chevin
Contact du Comité SEEM: seem@services.cnrs.fr.
Contact du Labex CEMEB: gestion.cemeb@univ-montp2.fr, www.labex-cemeb.org.
