Longevity and life history coevolve with oxidative stress in birds.

ABSTRACT: 1. The mechanisms that underpin the evolution of ageing and life histories remain elusive. Oxidative stress, which results in accumulated cellular damages, is one of the mechanisms suggested to play a role. 2. In this paper, we set out to test the "oxidative stress theory of ageing" and the "oxidative stress hypothesis of life histories" using a comprehensive phylogenetic comparison based on an unprecedented dataset of oxidative physiology in 88 free-living bird species. 3. We show for the first time that bird species with longer lifespan have higher non-enzymatic antioxidant capacity and suffer less oxidative damage to their lipids. We also found that bird species featuring a faster pace-of-life either have lower non-enzymatic antioxidant capacity or are exposed to higher levels of oxidat

SUBMITTER: Vagasi CI 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8291348 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature