Female Mate Choice Based On MHC Genes In Golden Snub-nosed Monkeys(Rhinopithecus Roxellana)

Mate choice is closely related to animal reproduction,some studies have found that females may follow different strategies in mate choice,in addition to the direct benefits from mating system,females also have indirect benefits from reproduction that affect their mate choice decisions.A large number of studies have shown that MHC(major histocompatibility complex)genes is closely related to the mate choice,there are three MHC-based mate choice hypothesis: disassotative choice,choice for heterozygosity and good genes hypothesis.The social mating system of Rhinopithecus roxellana is polygynous.However,their genetic mating system is polygamous.The female transfer and male take over were often occurred in Rhinopithecus roxellana troop.Female Rhinopithecus roxellana dominates in mate choice,meanwhile,extra-unit copulation was frequently observed and female will produce extra-pair offspring.However,how does a female evaluate the genetic quality of males,and what benefits a female might get from extra-unit copulation are still unclear.In this study,MHC class II DQA1,DQB1,DRB1,and DRB2 and microsatellite loci were used to analyze female's genetic preference for mate choice in the Dapingyu herd of Foping.The main results are as follows:1.There were total 12 alleles were identified from 4 MHC Loci in DPY herd,compared with the other herd of Qinling Mountains,the DPY troop has medium of genetic diversity and average heterozygosity was low.The number of microsatellite alleles isolated from each locus ranged was 2-8,The average genetic of microsatellite diversity was moderate.2.The linkage disequilibrium analysis showed that the MHC gene DQA1,DQB1,DRB1 and DRB2 loci were closely linked in the study troop.Four haplotyp es were identified in the DPY troop,H1(DQA1*01?DQB1*04?DRB1*03?DRB2*04)?H2(DQA1*02?DQB1*17?DRB1*14?DRB2*08)?H3(DQA1*08?DQB1*09?DRB1*03?DRB2*04)and H4(DQA1*08?DQB1*09?DRB1*17?DRB2*16)?3.Females will choose males whose heterozygosity and individual diversity are higher than social males for extra-unit copulation.