Mate choice

MHC-associated human mate choice

Because resistance to infection directly affects fitness, mate choice may be shaped by the immune genotypes of potential partners. In humans, however, the evidence for MHC-linked mate choice remains mixed, partly due to inconsistencies in how mate preferences are measured. To clarify these patterns, we conduct meta-analyses across studies of MHC-associated mate choice in both humans and non-human primates.

Selected Publications

Winternitz J, Abbate J, Huchard E, Havlíček J, Garamszegi LZ. 2017. Patterns of MHC-dependent mate selection in humans and non-human primates: a meta-analysis. Molecular Ecology 26: 668-688, https://doi.org/10.1111/mec.13920

Havlíček† J, Winternitz J†, Roberts SC. 2020. Major histocompatibility complex-associated odour preferences and human mate choice: near and far horizons. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B 375: 20190260. †Authors contributed equally https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2019.0260

Genetically-based social communication in banded mongooses

In mammals, odor cues are central to social communication—enabling kin recognition, individual identification, and mate choice. However, how genes influence these odor signals remains unclear. Odors may reflect genotype either directly, through by-products of MHC-mediated self/non-self recognition, or indirectly, by shaping the composition of odor-producing microbial communities.

Working with Dr Hazel Nichols (Swansea University, UK), Prof. Mike Cant (University of Exeter, UK), and collaborators from the Banded Mongoose Research Project, we use genetic, chemical, and behavioral data from wild banded mongooses to investigate the genetic basis of social odor cues. This species presents a rare and valuable opportunity: females give birth synchronously and litters are raised communally, limiting the reliability of familiarity cues for kin recognition. Yet, banded mongooses appear to avoid inbreeding, making them an ideal system for testing whether genetically-based odor cues mediate social and reproductive behavior.

Selected Publications

Schubert N, Nichols H, Winternitz J. 2021. How can the MHC mediate social odor via the microbiota community? A deep dive into mechanisms. Behavioral Ecology 32: 359-373. https://doi.org/10.1093/beheco/arab004

Schubert N, Stober C, Born M, Mwanguhya F, Businge R, Kyambulima S, Mwesige K, Cant MA, Nichols HJ, Winternitz JC. 2024. Banded mongooses discriminate relatedness and MHC diversity in unfamiliar conspecifics. bioRxiv 2024.2012.2022.629965. https://doi.org/10.1101/2024.12.22.629965

Schubert N, Nichols HJ, Mwanguhya F, Businge R, Kyambulima S, Mwesige K, Hoffman JI, Cant MA, Winternitz JC. 2025. Sex-dependent influence of major histocompatibility complex diversity on fitness in a social mammal. Molecular Ecology e70058. https://doi.org/10.1111/mec.70058

Media and public outreach

My work has been featured in PBS' digital series Far Out, which explores scientific and technical advancements we might expect to see in the future. The episode I am in is 'The Ethics of Future Dating: From DNA Matchmaking to AI Relationships' [1:32 to 3:29 is about the MHC].