Copulatory function and development shape modular architecture of genitalia differently in males and females

Author(s)

Genevcius, Bruno C. ^{[1, 2]} ; Simon, Monique N. ^[1] ; Moraes, Tamara ^[3] ; Schwertner, Cristiano F. ^{[3, 2, 4]}

Affiliation

^[1] Univ Sao Paulo, Inst Biosci, Dept Genet & Evolutionary Biol, Sao Paulo - Brazil

^[2] Univ Sao Paulo, Museum Zool, Grad Program Systemat Anim Taxon & Biodivers, Sao Paulo - Brazil

^[3] Univ Sao Paulo, Dept Entomol & Acarol, Luiz de Queiroz Coll Agr ESALQ, Grad Program Entomol, Piracicaba - Brazil

^[4] Univ Fed Sao Paulo, Dept Ecol & Evolutionary Biol, Inst Environm Chem & Pharmaceut Sci, Diadema - Brazil

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: Evolution; v. 74, n. 6 MAY 2020.
• Web of Science Citations: 0

Abstract

Genitalia are multitasking structures whose development is mediated by numerous regulatory pathways. This multifactorial nature provides an avenue for multiple sources of selection. As a result, genitalia tend to evolve as modular systems comprising semi-independent subsets of structures, yet the processes that give rise to those patterns are still poorly understood. Here, we ask what are the relative roles of development and function in shaping modular patterns of genitalia within populations and across species of stink-bugs. We found that male genitalia are less integrated, more modular, and primarily shaped by functional demands. In contrast, females show higher integration, lower modularity, and a predominant role of developmental processes. Further, interactions among parts of each sex are more determinant to modularity than those between the sexes, and patterns of modularity are equivalent between and within species. Our results strongly indicate that genitalia have been subjected to sex-specific selection, although male and female genitalia are homologous and functionally associated. Moreover, modular patterns are seemingly constant in the evolutionary history of stink-bugs, suggesting a scenario of multivariate stabilizing selection within each sex. Our study demonstrates that interactions among genital parts of the same sex may be more fundamental to genital evolution than previously thought. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 14/00729-3 - Phylogenetic classification of the family Pentatomidae Leach (Insecta: Hemiptera)
• Grantee: Cristiano Feldens Schwertner
• Support type: Regular Research Grants
• FAPESP's process: 14/21104-1 - Patterns and processes of genital evolution in Pentatomidae: Pentatominae (Insecta, Hemiptera)
• Grantee: Bruno Celso Feltrin Genevcius
• Support type: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate
• FAPESP's process: 18/09469-5 - Diversity and comparative phylogeography of the green-belly stink bugs Dichelops furcatus (Fabricius) and D. melacanthus (Dallas) (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae), emergent pests in the Neotropical: an integrative approach
• Grantee: Cristiano Feldens Schwertner
• Support type: Regular Research Grants