Cited by 80Turtle Biology and ConservationTelomeres, Telomerase, and SenescenceAnimal Behavior and Reproduction

The DOI matches its Crossref record; 49 of the 50 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.

Telomeres, Age and Reproduction in a Long-Lived Reptile

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Abstract

A major interest has recently emerged in understanding how telomere shortening, mechanism triggering cell senescence, is linked to organism ageing and life history traits in wild species. However, the links between telomere length and key history traits such as reproductive performances have received little attention and remain unclear to date. The leatherback turtle Dermochelys coriacea is a long-lived species showing rapid growth at early stages of life, one of the highest reproductive outputs observed in vertebrates and a dichotomised reproductive pattern related to migrations lasting 2 or 3 years, supposedly associated with different environmental conditions. Here we tested the prediction of blood telomere shortening with age in this species and investigated the relationship between blood telomere length and reproductive performances in leatherback turtles nesting in French Guiana. We found that blood telomere length did not differ between hatchlings and adults. The absence of blood telomere shortening with age may be related to an early high telomerase activity. This telomere-restoring enzyme was formerly suggested to be involved in preventing early telomere attrition in early fast-growing and long-lived species, including squamate reptiles. We found that within one nesting cycle, adult females having performed shorter migrations prior to the considered nesting season had shorter blood telomeres and lower reproductive output. We propose that shorter blood telomeres may result from higher oxidative stress in individuals breeding more frequently (i.e., higher costs of reproduction) and/or restoring more quickly their body reserves in cooler feeding areas during preceding migration (i.e., higher foraging costs). This first study on telomeres in the giant leatherback turtle suggests that blood telomere length predicts not only survival chances, but also reproductive performances. Telomeres may therefore be a promising new tool to evaluate individual reproductive quality which could be useful in such species of conservation concern.

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Crossref · 10.1371/journal.pone.0040855

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Figure 1 Estimated Clutch Frequency (ECF, the estimated number of clutches laid during the considered nesting season) and blood telomere length in relation to the duration of the migration preceding the considered nesting season (RI, the remigration interval) in leatherback turtles nesting in French Guiana in 2005 or 2006. ECF did not differ according to RI, but tended to be lower for 2-yr RI. Blood telomeres were significantly shorter in females with 2-yr versus 3-yr RI. Letters refer to test significance for ECF and T/C ratio separately. Values are means ± SE.
Figure 1 Estimated Clutch Frequency (ECF, the estimated number of clutches laid during the considered nesting season) and blood telomere length in relation to the duration of the migration preceding the considered nesting season (RI, the remigration interval) in leatherback turtles nesting in French Guiana in 2005 or 2006. ECF did not differ according to RI, but tended to be lower for 2-yr RI. Blood telomeres were significantly shorter in females with 2-yr versus 3-yr RI. Letters refer to test significance for ECF and T/C ratio separately. Values are means ± SE.CC BY · PubMed Central

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  1. MJ Crawley, 2007, The R book. J. Wiley & Sons Ltd, Chichester, UK.

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Metadata

Authors
Plot, V., Criscuolo, F., Zahn, S., & Georges, J.-Y.
Affiliations
Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (FR)
Corresponding author
Plot, Virginie
Venue
PLoS ONE
Published
2012-07-13
Volume
7
Issue
7
Pages
e40855
ISSN
1932-6203 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W2048943014
Cited by
80
References
50
Citations by year
2026: 1 · 2025: 7 · 2024: 6 · 2023: 4 · 2022: 4 · 2021: 7 · 2020: 12 · 2019: 6 · 2018: 6 · 2017: 10 · 2016: 7 · 2015: 6 · 2014: 2 · 2013: 2
FWCI
3.16
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • PLoS ONE (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • HAL (submittedVersion)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion)
Funders
Agence Nationale de la Recherche (ANR-07-JCJC-0122)
Topics
  • Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Nature and Landscape Conservation › Turtle Biology and Conservation
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Cell Biology › Telomeres, Telomerase, and Senescence
  • Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics › Animal Behavior and Reproduction
Keywords
telomere length, Dermochelys coriacea, aging, reproductive output, telomerase activity, cellular senescence, sea turtle migration, oxidative stress, foraging costs, life-history traits
MeSH terms
Animals, DNA, Female, French Guiana, Longevity, Models, Biological, Reproduction, Turtles, Telomere, Clutch Size, Telomere Homeostasis

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