Biparental immune priming in the pipefish Syngnathus typhle

TGIP is usually a maternal trait. However, if fathers have a physical connection to their offspring, and if offspring are born in the paternal parasitic environment, evolution of paternal TGIP can become adaptive.

In Syngnathus typhle, a sex-role reversed pipefish with male pregnancy, both parents invest into offspring immune defence. To connect TGIP with parental investment, we need to know how parents share the task of TGIP, whether TGIP is asymmetrically distributed between the parents, and how the maternal and paternal effects interact in case of biparentalTGIP. We experimentally investigated the strength and differences but also the costs of maternal and paternal contribution, and their interactive biparental influence on offspring immune defence through-out offspring maturation.