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Mating behavior and mate recognition pheromone blocking of male receptors in Brachionus plicatilis Müller (Rotifera)

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Abstract

Copulatory behavior of three S and three L type B. plicatilis strains from different geographic areas was analyzed. A 29 KD surface glycoprotein on females, characterized as a Mate Recognition Pheromone (MRP), binds to receptors in the corona of males and blocks mate recognition. Blocking was observed in all S and L strains even though the MRP was isolated from a single L-type strain. Binding was quantified using image analysis and a 20-fold difference was observed among strains. A direct relationship between the male discrimination of females and the intensity of MRP binding to male receptors was found. This relationship might be useful as a tool to examine variation in the mate recognition systems of other rotifer species.

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Rico-Martinez, R., Snell, T.W. Mating behavior and mate recognition pheromone blocking of male receptors in Brachionus plicatilis Müller (Rotifera). Hydrobiologia 313, 105–110 (1995). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00025937

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