Learning and experience shape mate preferences in many species. My thesis investigates the role of experience on mating behavior of male and female sailfin mollies (Poecilia latipinna). In the first chapter I explore whether adult experience influences male sailfin molly mate preference for their sexual parasite, the Amazon molly (Poecilia formosa), and whether experience could account for reproductive character displacement (RCD) of male mate preference in this species. Sailfin males from sympatric populations show a stronger preference for conspecific females over Amazon mollies than do males from allopatric populations. I exposed males from sympatric and allopatric populations to either a sailfin female or an Amazon prior to a mating trial with an Amazon. For the allopatric population, males with recent experience with an Amazon directed fewer mating behaviors towards an Amazon during mating trials than did males with recent experience with a sailfin. Males from the sympatric population, however, performed the same amount of mating behaviors towards an Amazon regardless of experience. Thus adult experience influences mating preferences and suggests that experience may play a role in RCD in this species. In the second chapter I investigate whether a learned sensory bias could influence female mate preferences. Sensory biases that influence mate preferences can arise through selection on the sensory system in foraging and predator detection domains. I tested whether a learned preference originating outside of the mating domain, specifically a color-based food preference, can be transferred to a color-based preference for a male trait. I trained female sailfin mollies to associate either green or blue with food and then tested their preference for animated male sailfins featuring either a blue or green spot. I found that females did not prefer the male with the same color spot to which they had been conditioned. I discuss the problem of learned preference transfer and suggest directions for future research into the role of learning in sensory bias. / text

There has been an increase in reports of male reproductive disorders that include male infertility and testicular cancer worldwide. It has been suggested that agents such as xenoestrogens could be responsible. Xenoestrogens are chemical compounds that mimic the action of estrogens by binding to the estrogen receptors (ERs). The response ofa testicular cell line to estrogenic pesticides was examined. The effect of estrogenic pesticides on the growth and protein levels of ERα and ERβ of mouse Sertoli cells was investigated. Pyrethroids are widely used insecticides due to their insecticidal potency and low mammalian toxicity. In this study, the estrogenicity ofpyrethroid chemicals were tested using the yeast estrogen screen (YES) assay. The toxic effects of the pyrethroid compounds cypermethrin, 3-(4-hydroxy-phenoxy)benzyl alcohol (metabolite of permethrin), and the commercial product (Ripcord Plus) were evaluated. The Sertoli cells were exposed to pyrethroids at concentrations of 0.36 nM and 36 µM (cypermethrin and Ripcord Plus), and 0.69 nM and 69 µM (metabolite) for 100 h. The expression of the ERs was analysed through the use of Enzyme Linked ImmunoSorbent Assay (ELISA) experiments. The most toxic pyrethroid was the metabolite, followed by Ripcord Plus then cypermethrin. Overall the exposure of the cells to cypermethrin (36 µM), Ripcord Plus (36 µM) and the metabolite (69 µM) caused a significant decrease (p<0.05) in ERα levels. In the cultures exposed to the metabolite (69 µM), there was also a significant increase in ERβ levels. There appears to be a relation between cell toxicity and an increase in ERβ levels, which supports the theory that ERβ promotes apoptosis. Pyrethroids are rapidly excreted from the body, and it is unknown if there is accumulation in the male testes. Male fertility could be affected through molecular mechanisms involving the ERs, should cells in the male testes be exposed to these pyrethroids at physiologically relevant concentrations.

Parity is associated with a short–term increase in breast cancer (BC) risk followed by a long–term decrease in risk. BC diagnosed 5–7 years after a completed pregnancy is associated with worse outcomes. BC is not a single disease. The dual effect of pregnancy could account for the BC characteristics at presentation (i.e. younger age and more advanced disease) and worse outcomes observed among Hispanics, relative to Non–Hispanic Whites. The purpose of this study was to investigate the association of reproductive characteristics by tumor subtype in a case series of women of Mexican–descent. Cases diagnosed ≤10 years following a birth had nearly 3 times the odds of a diagnosis with HER2+ tumors, relative to ER+/PR+ tumors. HER2+ tumors are associated with reduced survival compared to ER+/PR+ tumors. Diagnosis within a recent pregnancy may contribute to the aggressiveness of BC observed among women of Mexican descent ≤50 years of age.

International migration has grown in both scope and scale in recent decades. Almost half of the world's migrants move between countries lying within the global economic South, yet scholarship remains focused on South-to-North routes. This dissertation is a qualitative study of South-to-South migration experience of Nicaraguan women living in Costa Rica. In the mid-1990s, Costa Rica surpassed the United States as the primary destination for Nicaraguan migrants due to the coincided effects of economic distress in Nicaragua and economic developments in Costa Rica, creating gaps in the labor market that Nicaraguans filled.During the 1990s, the number of Nicaraguan migrants tripled to compose eight to sixteen percent of the Costa Rican population; women make up around half of the migrant population. What does the experience of moving between destination and origin contexts characterized by relative geographic, cultural, linguistic, economic and historical proximity reveal about the often juxtaposed social processes of integration and transnationalism? To explore this question, over a year of continuous ethnographic field research and systematic archival review of newspaper accounts were pursued in Costa Rica and Nicaragua (2005-06). Participant observation and 138 in-depth interviews were conducted with a purposeful sample of 43 migrant women, of whom two thirds were undocumented, and 12 Costa Rican health care workers. For its symbolic and material value to migrants and host country nationals, the health care system was the lens for examining migration issues and experience.Study findings suggest that multi-dimensional social forms of proximity for this migration circuit do not uniformly facilitate integration or transnationalism but rather the "paradoxes of proximity." Nicaraguan migrant women articulated feelings of profound exclusion and ambivalence about their lives. For Costa Ricans, migrants represented a threat to national ideals of "exceptionalism" central to historical accounts of their national identity. Ideals included racial and class homogeneity as well as the welfare state's successes in providing health care for all. By drawing on multiple theoretical perspectives from critical and clinical medical anthropology, feminist and historical anthropology, the study illustrates the importance of attending to paradoxical, local health-related experiences as a reflection of macro-level processes of globalization.

Life history theory attempts to explain between- and within-species variation in maturational and reproductive patterns, whereas sexual selection attempts to explain between- and within-sex differences in intersexual mate choice and intrasexual competition for members of the opposite sex. These two expansive evolutionary theories have been used by developmental scientists and social/personality psychologists to explain the variation observed in human reproduction, including the timing of reproductive events and individual differences in orientation toward mating and parenting. In Part I of the following paper, I review research related to life history theory and sexual selection in humans. I then show how integrating the principles of sexual selection with life history models of human reproductive strategies can address existing limitations. In Part II, I empirically examine many of the unique propositions that emerge from theoretical integration using a longitudinal dataset on adolescent development. Under investigation is an expanded model of sociosexual development that incorporates key principles from Belsky, Steinberg, and Draper's (BSD) psychosocial theory and sexual selection theory. I specifically examine the role of early rearing conditions within the home, as specified by BSD, and self-perceived mate value, as highlighted by a sexual selection perspective, on timing of sexual debut and sexual risk taking. The current study combines variable-centered and person-centered methods to assess specialized developmental trajectories. In total, the study provides novel support for BSD theory, while also highlighting needed revisions to account for the role of self-perceived mate value on adolescent sexual behavior.

Despite over seven decades of speciation research and 25 years of phylogeographic studies, a comprehensive understanding of mechanisms that generate biological species remains elusive. In temperate zones, the pervasiveness of range fragmentation and subsequent range expansions suggests that secondary contact between diverging lineages may be important in the evolution of species. Thus, such contact zones provide compelling opportunities to investigate evolutionary processes, particularly the roles of geographical isolation in initiating, and indirect selection against hybrids in completing (reinforcement), the evolution of reproductive isolation and speciation. The spring peeper (Pseudacris crucifer) has six well-supported mitochondrial lineages many of which are now in secondary contact. Here I investigate the evolutionary consequences of secondary contact of two such lineages (Eastern and Interior) in Southwestern Ontario using genetic, morphological, acoustical, experimental, and behavioural evidence to show accentuated divergence of the mate recognition system in sympatry. Mitochondrial and microsatellite data distinguish these two lineages but also show ongoing hybridization. Bayesian assignment tests and cline analysis imply asymmetrical introgression of Eastern lineage nuclear markers into Interior populations. Male calls are divergent between Eastern and Interior allopatric populations and show asymmetrical reproductive character displacement in sympatry. Female preference of pure lineage individuals is also exaggerated in sympatry, with hybrids showing intermediate traits and preference. I suggest that these patterns are most consistent with secondary reinforcement. I assessed levels of post-zygotic isolation between the Eastern and Interior lineages using a laboratory hybridization experiment. Hybrid tadpoles showed equal to or greater fitness than their pure lineage counterparts, but this may be countered through competition. More deformities and developmental anomalies in hybrid tadpoles further suggest post-zygotic isolation. Despite evidence for pre-mating isolation between the two lineages, isolation appears incomplete (i.e. hybridization is ongoing). I hypothesize that potentially less attractive hybrids may circumvent female choice by adopting satellite behaviour. Although mating tactics are related to body size, genetic status may play a role. I show that pure Eastern males almost always engage in calling, while hybrids adopt a satellite tactic. An absence of assortative mating, despite evidence of female preference, suggests successful satellite interception possibly facilitating introgression. / Thesis (Ph.D, Biology) -- Queen's University, 2013-03-04 16:01:33.892

Thesis (MBA)--Stellenbosch University, 2012. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Providing quality primary healthcare services in a scarce resource environment in South Africa is a challenge. This is exacerbated by segments of the population experiencing high unemployment and extreme poverty leading to a prevalence of diseases such as HIV/Aids and Tuberculosis. Long queues and staff shortages have led to the Department of Health decentralising the primary healthcare system into district facilities, with the intention of offering greater access to equitable healthcare for all South Africans. Sexual reproductive health falls under the category of primary healthcare and is a specialised function, often carried out by inadequately trained providers using quota systems, who consider this essential service to be a low priority. The area of sexual reproductive health includes termination of pregnancy, contraception, treatment of sexually transmitted infections and cancer screening. Although termination of pregnancy is legal in South Africa, reluctance on the part of service providers to offer this service, due to conscientious objection has created a shortage of safe, legal healthcare facilities. In an effort to provide these life-saving services, non-governmental organisations are attempting to fill the service delivery shortfall. With the assistance of international donor funding, Marie Stopes South Africa has established a number of sexual reproductive healthcare facilities in townships in Gauteng and KwaZulu Natal. These services take place from basic structures located within communities most in need of healthcare, and offer a range of sexual reproductive health services at low cost to men and women of reproductive age. As the operational focus is on provision of services otherwise not available, the organisation has not measured the levels of customer satisfaction adequately to date. Due to the preventative and potentially life-saving nature of these services, improved customer satisfaction levels could, through word of mouth advertising and customer retention, increase the use of these facilities by community members, reduce numbers of unplanned pregnancies, and ultimately contribute to a decrease in the incidence of maternal mortality due to unsafe abortions. In this study, the SERVQUAL instrument will measure the gap between customer expectations prior to services received, and perceptions of the services post-delivery, in order to establish the current service quality gaps in township healthcare facilities. Management of the organisation will use this information to implement actions to improve customer satisfaction and monitor the impact of these actions, with the aim of increasing positive word-of-mouth advertising, leading to greater use of services and ultimately the long-term sustainability of the facilities.

Barriers to interbreeding limit gene flow between sister taxa, leading to reproductive isolation and the maintenance of distinct species. These barriers come in many forms, and can act at different stages in the reproductive process. Pre-copulatory barriers may be due to individuals discriminating against heterospecifics in mate choice decisions. These decisions may be informed through a range of sensory modalities. If a female is mated and inseminated, then there may be multiple postmating-prezygotic barriers that affect the success of heterospecific sperm in attaining fertilisations. Post-zygotic barriers can be very early acting, resulting in embryonic fatality, or may be later acting, affecting the fitness of hybrid offspring. In this thesis I investigate potential reproductive barriers between the interbreeding field crickets Gryllus bimaculatus and G. campestris. I find that females of both species show only weak preference for conspecific calling song, and may even respond phonotactically to songs typical of heterospecific males. Female G. bimaculatus are repeatable in their preferences and strength of response. G. bimaculatus females presented with synthetic songs prefer those with longer inter-pulse intervals, whereas G. campestris show no discrimination between these songs. Upon meeting, G. campestris females strongly discriminate against heterospecific males, behaving aggressively towards them. This is likely driven by females responding to close range species recognition cues, including chemoreception. The species differ in their cuticular hydrocarbon profiles, and females that are no longer able to use their antennae to receive chemosensory information reduced their aggressive behaviour towards heterospecific males. G. bimaculatus females will mate with heterospecific males, though less readily than to conspecifics. When sequentially mated to both conspecific and heterospecific males, these females will preferentially take up and store sperm from the conspecific male, and sperm from conspecific males is more likely to sire offspring than would be predicted from the proportion of sperm in storage. Eggs from inter-species mating pairs are less likely to begin embryogenesis, and are more likely to suffer developmental arrest during the early stages of embryogenesis. However hybrid embryos that survive to later stages of development have hatching success similar to that of pure-bred embryos. After mating, phonotaxis of G. bimaculatus females towards male songs follows a pattern of suppression and subsequent recovery, likely triggered through detection of seminal proteins transferred in the male ejaculate, or detection of mechanical filling of the spermatheca. This pattern of suppression and recovery of phonotaxis does not differ between females mated to conspecific or heterospecific males. Females that lay few or no eggs do not experience a refractory period.

Drosophila melanogaster and many other insects harbor intracellular bacterial symbionts that are transmitted vertically from infected host mothers to their offspring. Many of these bacteria alter host reproductive developmental processes in order to increase their transmission success. For example, Spiroplasma, a spirochete that naturally infects D. melanogaster, selectively kills males during mid-embryogenesis while sparing females. Previous studies suggested that Spiroplasma interacts genetically with the male-specific dosage compensation pathway, which causes ~2-fold up-regulation of most genes located on the male’s single X chromosome so that their expression matches the levels found in females who have two Xs. To further test this idea, I used confocal microscopy to visualize dosage compensation complex (DCC) localization and activity in infected as well as uninfected embryos. In the presence of Spiroplasma, the DCC became abnormally mis-localized across the nucleus. This pattern was accompanied by abnormal acetylation of histone H4K16, a mark induced by DCC activity and needed for proper X chromatin remodeling. My results imply that Spiroplasma directly targets the DCC by misdirecting it to uncompensated regions of the genome, an effect that leads to abnormal gene mis-regulation and consequent lethality (work from other members in our group). To further investigate this interaction, we transgenically expressed low levels of MSL-2 in both Spiroplasma infected and uninfected embryos in order to cause ectopic formation of the DCC in the female sex. I found that when infected, female embryos expressing the DCC showed significantly reduced viability in comparison to uninfected transgenic females. This result supports the notion that Spiroplasma uses the DCC in a dominant gain-of-function manner to kill embryos.

My aim with this research has been to see how surrogate mothers' situation in Georgia looks like, and how different aspects affect the understanding of the process itself and create different prerequisites for surrogate mothers. I interviewed staffs who meet surrogate mothers in their work. I conducted five interviews. The theories I have chosen to use in the study is Maslow's hierarchy of needs and Goffman's labeling theory. I concluded that surrogacy is a controversial subject that is interesting to analyze, based on these theories. After I had interviewed people, it turned out that there are some hierarchical differences between surrogate mothers and biological mothers. The study shows those surrogate mothers' motives and perception is different in society, leading to stigma and categorized ring of the phenomenon. In the future it will be interesting to formulate, visualize, debate and discuss how surrogacy affects society and the professionals' assessments of the phenomenon. I hope that the study raises future interest in others and brings new perspectives which professionals can benefit from. / Mitt mål med denna uppsats har varit att se hur surrogatmödrars situation i Georgien ser ut, och hur olika aspekter påverkar förståelsen för själva processen och skapar olika förutsättningar för surrogatamödrar.  Jag gjorde detta genom att intervjua personal som träffar surrogatamödrar i sin verksamhet. Jag genomförde fem intervjuer. De teorier jag valt att använda i studien är Maslows behovstrappa och Goffmans stämplingsteori. Jag kom fram till att surrogatmödraskap är ett omdiskuterat ämne som är intressant att analysera utifrån dessa teorier. Efter att jag intervjuat personerna visade det sig att det förekommer en del hierarkiska skillnader mellan surrogatmödrar och biologiska mammor. Studien visar att surrogatmödrarnas motiv och uppfattning ser olika ut i samhället, vilket leder till stigmatisering och kategorisering av själva fenomenet. I framtiden kommer det bli intressant att formulera, synliggöra, problematisera och diskutera hur surrogatmödraskap påverkar samhället och professionellas bedömningar på fenomenet. Jag hoppas att studien väcker framtida intresse för andra och bidrar med nya perspektiv som professionella kan ha nytta av.