A proposed mediator of trade-offs between survival and reproduction is oxidative stress resistance. Investments in reproduction are associated with increased oxidative stress that reduces lifespan. We used the bdelloid rotifer Adineta vaga to examine baseline patterns of survival, reproduction, and measures of oxidative stress, as well as how these patterns change in the face of treatments known to induce oxidative stress.
We discovered that under standard laboratory conditions late-life mortality may be explained by increased levels of oxidative stress induced by reproduction. However, following exposure to the oxidizing agent ionizing radiation, survival was unaffected while reproduction was reduced.
We suggest that under normal environmental conditions, reduced survival is mediated by endogenously generated oxidative stress induced by reproduction, and thus represents a cost of reproduction. Alternatively, the reduced reproduction evident under exogenously applied oxidative stress represents a cost of somatic maintenance. Biochemical analyses designed to assess levels of oxidative stress, oxidative stress resistance, and oxidative damage under normal and oxidizing conditions suggest that varying investments in enzymatic and non-enzymatic based oxidative stress resistance determine whether a cost of reproduction or a cost of somatic maintenance is observed.