The DOI matches its Crossref record; 96 of the 96 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
The Scent of Genetic Compatibility: Sexual Selection and the Major Histocompatibility Complex
Abstract
Individuals in some species prefer mates carrying dissimilar genes at the major histocompatibility complex (MHC), which may function to increase the MHC or overall heterozygosity of progeny. Here I review the evidence for MHC‐dependent mating preferences from recent studies, including studies on the underlying olfactory mechanisms and evolutionary functions. Many studies indicate that MHC genes influence odour, and some work is beginning to examine the potential role of MHC‐linked olfactory receptor genes in mating preferences. MHC‐dependent mating preference increases the MHC‐heterozygosity of progeny, which is suspected to confer resistance to infectious diseases. In humans, heterozygosity at MHC loci is associated with increased resistance to hepatitis and HIV infections, but experimental evidence for the heterozygote advantage hypothesis has been lacking. Here I re‐analyse data from previously published experimental infection studies with mice. I show that although overdominance is rare, resistance is often dominant, suggesting that heterozygotes are often protected. A second (nonmutually exclusive) possibility is that MHC‐disassortative mating preferences promotes inbreeding avoidance. This hypothesis is supported by recent evidence that MHC genes play a role in kin recognition, and that mating with close kin has rather deleterious fitness consequences. In conclusion, I discuss other ways that MHC genes might influence sexual selection. The research on MHC‐mediated mating preferences is integrating the study of animal behaviour with other seemingly disparate fields, including sensory biology and immunogenetics.
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Citations
Cites
Parental Investment and Sexual Selection
(2017) · Sexual Selection and the Descent of Man · doi:10.4324/9781315129266-7 · Cited by 9,510
Heritable True Fitness and Bright Birds: A Role for Parasites?
Hamilton, W. D., & Zuk, M. (1982) · Science · doi:10.1126/science.7123238 · Cited by 3,733
Common West African HLA antigens are associated with protection from severe malaria
Hill, A. V. S., Allsopp, C. E. M., Kwiatkowski, D., Anstey, N. M., Twumasi, P., Rowe, P. A., Bennett, S., Brewster, D., McMichael, A. J., & Greenwood, B. M. (1991) · Nature · doi:10.1038/352595a0 · Cited by 1,552
Genetic conflicts in human pregnancy
Haig, D. (1993) · The Quarterly Review of Biology · doi:10.1086/418300 · Cited by 1,253 · cited 1×
“Research on MHC and mate choice in humans is helping to integrate the biological and social sciences, and ®nally, if MHC genes are involved in abortional selection, then such a ®nding will integrate animal behaviour with reproductive immunology and medicine (Haig 1993; Haig 1997).”
BackgroundHLA and HIV-1: Heterozygote Advantage and B*35-Cw*04 Disadvantage
Carrington, M., Nelson, G. W., Martin, M. P., Kissner, T., Vlahov, D., Goedert, J. J., Kaslow, R., Buchbinder, S., Hoots, K., & O'Brien, S. J. (1999) · Science · doi:10.1126/science.283.5408.1748 · Cited by 1,224
Inbreeding avoidance in animals
Pusey, A., & Wolf, M. (1996) · Trends in Ecology & Evolution · doi:10.1016/0169-5347(96)10028-8 · Cited by 1,036
Genetic compatibility, mate choice and patterns of parentage: Invited Review
Tregenza, T., & Wedell, N. (2000) · Molecular Ecology · doi:10.1046/j.1365-294x.2000.00964.x · Cited by 958
MHC-dependent mate preferences in humans
(1995) · Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. Series B: Biological Sciences · doi:10.1098/rspb.1995.0087 · Cited by 953
The Evolution of Mating Preferences and Major Histocompatibility Complex Genes
Penn, D. J., & Potts, W. K. (1999) · The American Naturalist · doi:10.1086/303166 · Cited by 752
Self-citationPARASITE-MEDIATED SELECTION AGAINST INBRED SOAY SHEEP IN A FREE-LIVING ISLAND POPULATON
Coltman, D. W., Pilkington, J. G., Smith, J. A., & Pemberton, J. M. (1999) · Evolution · doi:10.1111/j.1558-5646.1999.tb04538.x · Cited by 743
Cited by
The importance of immune gene variability (MHC) in evolutionary ecology and conservation
Sommer, S. (2005) · Frontiers in Zoology · doi:10.1186/1742-9994-2-16 · Cited by 913
Online Dating: A Critical Analysis From the Perspective of Psychological Science
Finkel, E. J., Eastwick, P. W., Karney, B. R., Reis, H. T., & Sprecher, S. (2012) · Psychological Science in the Public Interest · doi:10.1177/1529100612436522 · Cited by 812
MHC heterozygosity confers a selective advantage against multiple-strain infections
Penn, D. J., Damjanovich, K., & Potts, W. K. (2002) · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · doi:10.1073/pnas.162006499 · Cited by 668
Self-citationIndividual and gender fingerprints in human body odour
Penn, D. J., Oberzaucher, E., Grammer, K., Fischer, G., Soini, H. A., Wiesler, D., Novotny, M. V., Dixon, S. J., Xu, Y., & Brereton, R. G. (2007) · Journal of The Royal Society Interface · doi:10.1098/rsif.2006.0182 · Cited by 396
Self-citationAdvances in the Evolutionary Understanding of MHC Polymorphism
Radwan, J., Babik, W., Kaufman, J., Lenz, T. L., & Winternitz, J. (2020) · Trends in Genetics · doi:10.1016/j.tig.2020.01.008 · Cited by 333
Metadata
- Authors
- Penn, D. J.
- Venue
- Ethology
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 2002-01
- Volume
- 108
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 1-21
- ISSN
- 0179-1613 (ISSN-L)
- 1439-0310
- OpenAlex
- W1980215277
- Cited by
- 503
- References
- 96
- FWCI
- 24.09
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
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Contains information from the Semantic Scholar Academic Graph Datasets, made available under the ODC Attribution License (ODC-BY 1.0).
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