Amelioration of reproduction-associated oxidative stress in a viviparous insect is critical to prevent reproductive senescence.

ABSTRACT: Impact of reproductive processes upon female health has yielded conflicting results; particularly in relation to the role of reproduction-associated stress. We used the viviparous tsetse fly to determine if lactation, birth and involution lead to damage from oxidative stress (OS) that impairs subsequent reproductive cycles. Tsetse females carry an intrauterine larva to full term at each pregnancy cycle, and lactate to nourish them with milk secretions produced by the accessory gland ( = milk gland) organ. Unlike most K-strategists, tsetse females lack an apparent period of reproductive senescence allowing the production of 8-10 progeny over their entire life span. In a lactating female, over 47% of the maternal transcriptome is associated with the generation of milk proteins. The resulting

SUBMITTER: Michalkova V 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3998933 | biostudies-literature | 2014

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature