Meeting Abstract

P2.151  Sunday, Jan. 5 15:30  Maternal dietary effects and age at first reproduction in the House mouse DONOVIEL, Z.S.*; SIRMAN, A.E.; HOOD, W.R.; Auburn University zsd0001@auburn.edu

There is strong evidence that a mother’s diet can have lasting impacts on the condition and physiology of her young. Yet, the adaptive significance of these effects remains poorly tested. Traits that result in early reproductive maturity should be selected for within a population, as early maturation over successive generations results in a rapid infusion of early maturating phenotypes. We tested the impact of maternal diet on offspring age at first reproduction in the house mouse, Mus musculus. Wild derived house mice were maintained in enclosures that mimic the environmental conditions and population sizes that wild mice often experience while living in barns. The F₀ generation was fed a high (20%, H) or low (10%, L) protein diet. At weaning, F₁ offspring were either placed on a diet that matched that of their parents (HH, or LL) a diet that is a mismatch to their parents diet (LH or HL). The reproductive performance of all F₁ mice were monitored daily and microsatellites were used to determine the parentage of the first litter that each parent gave birth to. The results of this study will be presented within the context of the environmental matching and silver spoon hypotheses.