Deck 4: Molecular Gene Tics and Development

Question 1

Sets of genes that contribute to the expression of a behavioral trait are called:

A) mapped genes.
B) quantitative trait loci.
C) recombinant loci.
D) transposable elements.
E) monogenic alleles.

Answer 1

B

Question 2

Voles possessing the long version allele of avpr1a are:

A) more likely to exhibit parental care and more likely to be affiliative.
B) less likely to exhibit parent care and less likely to be affiliative.
C) less likely to exhibit parental care and more likely to be affiliative.
D) more likely to exhibit parental care but less likely to be affiliative.
E) none of the above.

Answer 2

A

Question 3

When young cichlids are raised with adults or adults and helpers, they tend to:

A) display less cost-effective territorial defense behaviors.
B) avoid establishing territories altogether.
C) display more cost-effective territorial defense behaviors.
D) exhibit extreme forms of aggression.
E) mate earlier.

Answer 3

C

Question 4

When only a single copy of the allele is necessary for a trait to be expressed, the allele is said to be:

A) recessive
B) polygenic
C) co-dominant
D) dominant
E) hyperdominant

Question 5

Which of the following is NOT part of the procedure for QTL mapping?

A) selection of parental strains that differ considerably in their behavior
B) selection of parental strains that differ at a set of marker alleles
C) selection of parental strains that are heterozygous at the marker gene loci
D) crossing the two parental strains to generate the F₁ generation
E) Mate F₁ individuals to produce F₂ and then examine both the behavior and the marker loci genotypes of these F₂ individuals

Question 6

When the FOXP2 gene is knocked out in young zebra finches, their ability to____________is severely impaired.

A) forage
B) learn complex songs
C) sing
D) fly
E) copy adult songs

Question 7

Which of the following occurs as a result of parasitoid wasps being raised at cold temperatures during development?

A) a change in the number of eggs that females lay inside of the host
B) a change in the ability of females to discriminate parasitized from unparasitized hosts
C) a change in the morphology of the ovipositor
D) a and b
E) a and c

Question 8

Which of the following statements regarding Toma and colleagues's work on the per gene and foraging in honeybees is FALSE?

A) Per gene mRNA expression was greatest in young bees that remained at the nest.
B) The per gene was used as a candidate gene involved in the control of developmental changes to foraging behavior.
C) Per gene mRNA expression was quantified in their study.
D) Young, precocious foragers had similar per mRNA levels as typical, older foragers.
E) Studies were conducted in both laboratory and natural populations of honeybees.

Question 9

One proximate factor related to ultraviolet vision in zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata) involves:

A) changes in the curvature of the lens, which helps to filter out certain wavelengths of light.
B) a single amino acid change that alters pigment characteristics.
C) alterations to retinal structure that inhibit processing of violet pigments.
D) hormones that trigger the release of ultraviolet pigments from specific brain regions.
E) a vast number of genetic substitutions, the effects of which have yet to be quantified.

Question 10

Which two "family" factors interact to determine the amount of parental care that female prairie voles give to their young?

A) temperature and whether the individual was raised by a single parent vs. both parents
B) the amount of parental care received during development and whether the individual was raised by a single parent vs. both parents
C) temperature and the amount of parental care received during development
D) the level of aggression between young voles and whether the individual was raised by a single parent vs. both parents
E) temperature and the level of aggression between young voles

Question 11

Read the article by Brodie III (1992), "Correlational Selection for Color Pattern and Antipredator Behavior in the Garter Snake Thamnophis ordinoides" (Evolution, vol. 46, pp. 1284-1298). First, define correlational selection and take some time to investigate the genetic factors that might underlie this process; for example, explore the meaning of the terms pleiotropy and linkage disequilibrium. Second, how did the author investigate the hypothesis that color and antipredator behavior might be subject to correlational selection? Describe what the author discovered and how correlational selection might drive significant variation in both color and behavior in garter snake populations.

Question 12

Read the article by Edwards and Mackay (2009), "Quantitative Trait Loci for Aggressive Behavior in Drosophila melanogaster" (Genetics, vol. 182, pp. 889-897). How did the authors evaluate aggression in these flies? Can you think of any alternative methods for quantifying aggression in a more standardized fashion? Next, describe the authors' approach to identifying QTLs associated with aggressive behavior. They found that many of the QTLs interact epistatically. What is epistasis and how do epistatic interactions introduce significant challenges to understanding the genetic basis of complex behaviors like aggression? (See also Zwarts et al. 2011 and Anholt & Mackay 2012.)

Question 13

How might maternal hormonal status influence the behavioral development of offspring in egg-laying animals (e.g., amphibians, fish, birds)? For example, let's say that the mother is stressed or subjected to increased competition while producing the eggs. If this causes the mother to exhibit elevated cortisol or testosterone levels, how might this influence the behavioral traits of her offspring? For some clues, see Sloman (2010) and Burton et al. (2011). Do you think mothers might be able to alter hormone allocation to the eggs depending on prevailing environmental condition, and that this allocation might impact offspring fitness?

Question 14

Read the article by Renn and colleagues (2008), "Fish and Chips: Functional Genomics of Social Plasticity in an African Cichlid Fish" (Journal of Experimental Biology, vol. 211, pp. 3041-3056) and the article by Aubin-Horth and colleagues (2012), "Natural Variation in the Molecular Stress Network Correlates with a Behavioural Syndrome" (Hormones and Behavior, vol. 61, pp. 140-146). Compare and contrast the molecular genetic approaches used by these two teams of researchers to reveal the genetic correlates of social plasticity and an aggression-boldness behavioral syndrome, respectively. In what ways do these studies shed light on the complexities underlying behavioral traits?

Question 15

Read the article by Heiming and colleagues (2013), "To Attack, or Not to Attack? The Role of Serotonin Transporter Genotype in the Display of Maternal Aggression" (Behavioural Brain Research, vol. 242, pp. 135-141). Which molecular genetic technique did these authors use to examine the relationship between the serotonin transporter and maternal aggression in lactating female mice? What is the function of the serotonin transporter? Why do you think that both homozygous and heterozygous 5HTT-knockout mice showed less offensive aggression than wild-type controls? Based on your readings from Chapter 3 of Principles of Animal Behavior, develop at least two hypotheses regarding how reduced serotonin transporter activity might mediate offensive maternal aggression.