Gynogenesis

[ASEMBER2]

In which category is your new term request?

• new_definition
• existing_definition

Preferred term label

gynogenesis

Synonyms

sperm-dependent parthenogenesis or pseudogamy

Synonym type

None

Textual definition

A clonal (asexual) mode of reproduction. In gynogenetic systems female produces unreduced ova (by ameiotic process or endoreduplication) that develop into all-female offspring. As opposed to parthenogenesis, gynogenesis is dependent of sperm of parental sexual lineage or related sexual species to trigger embryonic development. Sperm donors usually do not contribute genetically to the next generation as the sperm genome gets eliminated after fertilization. Thus, in contrary to parthenogenesis, gynogenetic organisms have to co-exist with a sexual species, which serve as a sperm donator. These associations are reffered to as complexes. Occasionally, the sperm nuclear and/or mitochondrial genome may be incorporated and contribute genetically to the progeny (paternal leakage), in the range from subgenomic amounts to entire sperm genome incorporation. The latter case results in an elevated ploidy level in the offspring (genome addition). Definition summarized from: Lamatsch DK, Stöck M. 2009 (https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-2770-2) and Stöck M, et al. 2021 (https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2020.0103).

ID of term

No response

Parent term

asexual (BCIO:015004; NCIT:C155696), asexuality (GSSO:000699), Reproduction, Asexual (OMIT:0013024). Other parent term should be: clonal reproduction (not yet defined in OLS)

Children term(s)

gynogen, paternal leakage

Taxon-restricted

Seems to be restricted to teleost fishes thus far. Gynogenesis occurs e.g. in Cobitis loaches, Amazon molly Poecilia formosa, Prussian carp Carassius gibelio, Carassius lansdorfii, Phoxinus eos, Poeciliopsis.

Reference

Lamatsch DK, Stöck M. 2009 Sperm-dependent parthenogenesis and hybridogenesis in teleost fishes. In Lost sex—The evolutionary biology of parthenogenesis (eds I Schön, K Martens, P. van Dijk), pp. 399–432. Heidelberg, Berlin, Germany:
Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-2770-2

Stöck M, Dedukh D, Reifová R, Lamatsch DK, Starostová Z, Janko K. 2021 Sex chromosomes in meiotic, hemiclonal, clonal and polyploid hybrid vertebrates: along the ‘extended speciation continuum’. Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B 376: 20200103.
https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2020.0103

ORCID Identifier

No response

Additional context

Related mechanism: kleptogenesis.

Code of Conduct

• I agree to follow this project's Code of Conduct