doublesex alters aggressiveness as a function of social context and sex in the polyphenic beetle Onthophagus taurus.

ABSTRACT: Despite sharing nearly the same genome, individuals within the same species can vary drastically in both morphology and behaviour as a function of developmental stage, sex or developmental plasticity. Thus, regulatory processes must exist that enable the stage-, sex- or environment-specific expression of traits and their integration during ontogeny, yet exactly how trait complexes are co-regulated and integrated is poorly understood. In this study, we explore the developmental genetic basis of the regulation and integration of environment-dependent sexual dimorphism in behaviour and morphology in the horn-polyphenic dung beetle Onthophagus taurus through the experimental manipulation of the transcription factor doublesex (dsx). The gene dsx plays a profound role in the

SUBMITTER: Beckers OM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5618252 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature