Reduced Heterozygosity Impairs Sperm Quality In Endangered Mammals

Main Category: Veterinary
Also Included In: Biology / Biochemistry
Article Date: 04 Mar 2009 - 7:00 PDT

email to a friend   printer friendly   opinions  

Endangered species are often plagued by reductions in fertility, and these effects are typically attributed to inbreeding. However, the mechanisms underlying such effects are largely unknown. Here we show that inbreeding has severe negative effects on sperm quality.

We analysed published information on sperm abnormalities and motility in 10 endangered and 10 non-endangered mammal species. We show that endangered populations have impaired sperm quality compared to their non-endangered counterparts. We also report a strong negative correlation between the level of inbreeding and sperm quality within endangered populations.

These findings offer a functional explanation for why threatened species often exhibit impaired fertility, and suggest that attempts to restore endangered populations should focus on reducing the level of inbreeding to maximize a population's reproductive potential.

Royal Society Journal Biology Letters

Proceedings B is the Royal Society's flagship biological research journal, dedicated to the rapid publication and broad dissemination of high-quality research papers, reviews and comment and reply papers. The scope of the journal is diverse and is especially strong in organismal biology.

http://rspb.royalsocietypublishing.org

• Additional
• References
• Citations