Genetic diversity and reproductive success in mandrills (Mandrillus sphinx)

doi:10.1073/pnas.0507205102

Genetic diversity and reproductive success in mandrills (Mandrillus sphinx)

^*Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, Unite Mixte de Recherche 5175, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, 1919 Route de Mende, 34293 Montpellier Cedex 5, France; ^†Unité de Génétique des Ecosystèmes Tropicaux, Centre International de Recherches Médicales de Franceville, BP 769, Franceville, Gabon; ^¶Department of Biological Anthropology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3DZ, United Kingdom; and ^∥Department of Genetics, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695-7614

Edited by Tomoko Ohta, National Institute of Genetics, Mishima, Japan, and approved September 29, 2005 (received for review August 25, 2005)

Abstract

Recent studies of wild animal populations have shown that estimators of neutral genetic diversity, such as mean heterozygosity, are often correlated with various fitness traits, such as survival, disease susceptibility, or reproductive success. We used two estimators of genetic diversity to explore the relationship between heterozygosity and reproductive success in male and female mandrills (Mandrillus sphinx) living in a semifree ranging setting in Gabon. Because social rank is known to influence reproductive success in both sexes, we also examined the correlation between genetic diversity and social rank in females, and acquisition of alpha status in males, as well as length of alpha male tenure. We found that heterozygous individuals showed greater reproductive success, with both females and males producing more offspring. However, heterozygosity influenced reproductive success only in dominant males, not in subordinates. Neither the acquisition of alpha status in males, nor social rank in females, was significantly correlated with heterozygosity, although more heterozygous alpha males showed longer tenure than homozygous ones. We also tested whether the benefits of greater genetic diversity were due mainly to a genome-wide effect of inbreeding depression or to heterosis at one or a few loci. Multilocus effects best explained the correlation between heterozygosity and reproductive success and tenure, indicating the occurrence of inbreeding depression in this mandrill colony.

Footnotes

↵ § To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: mariecharp{at}yahoo.fr.
↵ ‡ M.C. and J.M.S. contributed equally to this work.
Author contributions: M.C. and J.M.S. designed research; M.C. and J.M.S. performed research; M.C. and F.P. analyzed data; and M.C., J.M.S., L.A.K., E.J.W., P.P., and M.H. wrote the paper.
Conflict of interest statement: No conflicts declared.
This paper was submitted directly (Track II) to the PNAS office.
Abbreviations: CIRMF, Centre International de Recherches Médicales de Franceville; HO, observed heterozygosity per individual; IR, internal relatedness.