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Making Young from Old: How is Sex Designed to Help?

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Abstract

Gametogenesis and syngamy are shown to incorporate, as key elements in their design, structures and processes that help to prevent age-related deterioration that accumulates in adult somas from being transferred directly to newly formed offspring. As such, in addition to producing new gene combinations, sex increases the separation of germ and soma. It follows as a central prediction that offspring of a species that has recently abandoned sex will manifest early in life some of the dysfunctions that formerly manifested only much later in life. These dysfunctions, which can include early onset of age-linked diseases such as cancer, should impede transitioning to non-sex, and therefore would help to account for sex’s maintenance. Evidence is reviewed, and found generally to support the hypothesis.

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Acknowledgments

Laura Betzig, Bernie Crespi, Tom Kirkwood, and Steve Stearns very generously lent their expertise, and also gave much needed encouragement. Paul Sherman and Kyle Summers commented on an early draft that led to a complete re-write, and two anonymous reviewers offered especially thoughtful suggestions.

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  1. Department of Pediatrics and Communicable Diseases, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA

    Paul W. Turke

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Correspondence to Paul W. Turke.

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Turke, P.W. Making Young from Old: How is Sex Designed to Help?. Evol Biol 40, 471–479 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11692-013-9236-5

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