Copy number variation of a fatty acid desaturase gene Fads2 associated with ecological divergence in freshwater stickleback populations

Escaping malnutrition by shifting habitats: A driver of three-spined stickleback invasion in Lake Constance

Fatty acids, and especially long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids, are biologically important components in the metabolism of vertebrates, including fish. Essential fatty acids (EFA) are those that in a given animal cannot be synthesized or modified from precursors and must therefore be acquired via the diet. Because EFAs are often unevenly distributed in nature, this requirement may drive species to make behavioral or ecological adaptations to avoid malnutrition. This is especially true for fish like the three-spined stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus L.) of Upper Lake Constance (ULC), whose recent marine ancestors evolved with access to EFA-rich prey, but which found themselves in an EFA-deficient habitat. An unexpected and unprecedented ecological shift in the ULC stickleback population from the littoral to pelagic zones in 2012 might be linked to EFA availability, triggering ecological release and enabling them to build a hyperabundant population while displacing the former keystone species, the pelagic whitefish Coregonus wartmanni. To test this hypothesis, sticklebacks from the littoral and pelagic zones of ULC were sampled seasonally in two consecutive years, and their stomach contents and fatty acid profiles were analysed. Pelagic sticklebacks were found to possess significantly higher values of an important EFA, docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), especially during autumn. Evaluation of the DHA supply suggests that sticklebacks feeding in the littoral zone during autumn could not meet their DHA requirement, whereas DHA availability in the pelagic zone was surplus to demand. During autumn, pelagic sticklebacks consumed large amounts of DHA-rich prey, that is, copepods, whereas littoral sticklebacks relied mainly mostly on cladocerans, which provide much lower quantities of DHA. Access to pelagic zooplankton in 2012 was possibly facilitated by low densities of previously dominant zooplanktivorous whitefish. The present study offers a convincing physiological explanation for the observed expansion of invasive sticklebacks from the littoral to the pelagic zones of Lake Constance, contributing to a phase shift with severe consequences for fisheries.

Environmentally independent selection for hybrids between divergent freshwater stickleback lineages in semi-natural ponds

Hybridization following secondary contact of genetically divergent populations can influence the range expansion of invasive species, though specific outcomes depend on the environmental dependence of hybrid fitness. Here, using two genetically and ecologically divergent threespine stickleback lineages that differ in their history of freshwater colonization, we estimate fitness variation of parental lineages and hybrids in semi-natural freshwater ponds with contrasting histories of nutrient loading. In our experiment, we found that fish from the older freshwater lineage (Lake Geneva) and hybrids outperformed fish from the younger freshwater lineage (Lake Constance) in terms of both growth and survival, regardless of the environmental context of our ponds. Across all ponds, hybrids exhibited the highest survival. Although wild-caught adult populations differed in their functional and defence morphology, it is unclear which of these traits underlie the fitness differences observed among juveniles in our experiment. Overall, our work suggests that when hybrid fitness is insensitive to environmental conditions, as observed here, introgression may promote population expansion into unoccupied habitats and accelerate invasion success.

Diet effects on longevity, heat tolerance, lipid peroxidation and mitochondrial membrane potential in Daphnia

The dietary supply of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) crucially affects animals' performance at different temperatures. However, the underlying physiological mechanisms are still insufficiently understood. Here, we analyzed lifespan and heat tolerance of four genotypes of Daphnia magna reared on either the green alga Scenedesmus obliquus that lacks long-chain (> C18) PUFA, or the heterokont alga Nannochloropsis limnetica that contains C20 PUFA, both either at saturating and near-starvation levels. A significant genotype-by-diet interaction in lifespan was observed at saturating diets. The C20 PUFA-rich diet eliminated differences in lifespan among genotypes on the PUFA-deficient diet. Corrected for body length, acute heat tolerance was higher at low than at high food concentration, at least in the older of the two age groups analyzed. Genotypes differed significantly in heat tolerance, but there were no genotype-by-diet interactions. As predicted, the C20 PUFA-rich diet resulted in higher lipid peroxidation (LPO) and a lower mitochondrial membrane potential (ΔΨ_m). LPO levels averaged across clones and rearing conditions were inversely related to acute heat tolerance. Yet, heat tolerance was higher on the PUFA-rich diet than on the PUFA-deficient diet, particularly in older Daphnia, indicating that the C20 PUFA-rich diet allowed Daphnia to compensate for higher LPO. In contrast, Daphnia with intermediate levels of ΔΨ_m showed the lowest heat tolerance. Neither LPO nor ΔΨ_m explained the diet effects on lifespan. We hypothesize that antioxidants present in the PUFA-rich diet may have enabled higher heat tolerance of Daphnia despite higher LPO, which may also explain the lifespan expansion of otherwise short-lived genotypes.

Functional characterization reveals a diverse array of metazoan fatty acid biosynthesis genes

Long-chain (≥C₂₀ ) polyunsaturated fatty acids (LC-PUFAs) are physiologically important fatty acids for most animals, including humans. Although most LC-PUFA production occurs in aquatic primary producers such as microalgae, recent research indicates the ability of certain groups of (mainly marine) invertebrates for endogenous LC-PUFA biosynthesis and/or bioconversion from dietary precursors. The genetic pathways for and mechanisms behind LC-PUFA biosynthesis remain unknown in many invertebrates to date, especially in non-model species. However, the numerous genomic and transcriptomic resources currently available can contribute to our knowledge of the LC-PUFA biosynthetic capabilities of metazoans. Within our previously generated transcriptome of the benthic harpacticoid copepod Platychelipus littoralis, we detected expression of one methyl-end desaturase, one front-end desaturase, and seven elongases, key enzymes responsible for LC-PUFA biosynthesis. To demonstrate their functionality, we characterized eight of them using heterologous expression in yeast. The P. littoralis methyl-end desaturase has Δ15/17/19 desaturation activity, enabling biosynthesis of α-linolenic acid, eicosapentaenoic acid and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) from 18:2 n-6, 20:4 n-6 and 22:5 n-6, respectively. Its front-end desaturase has Δ4 desaturation activity from 22:5 n-3 to DHA, implying that P. littoralis has multiple pathways to produce this physiologically important fatty acid. All studied P. littoralis elongases possess varying degrees of elongation activity for saturated and unsaturated fatty acids, producing aliphatic hydrocarbon chains with lengths of up to 30 carbons. Our investigation revealed a functionally diverse range of fatty acid biosynthesis genes in copepods, which highlights the need to scrutinize the role that primary consumers could perform in providing essential nutrients to upper trophic levels.

The role of vital dietary biomolecules in eco-evo-devo dynamics

The physiological dependence of animals on dietary intake of vitamins, amino acids, and fatty acids is ubiquitous. Sharp differences in the availability of these vital dietary biomolecules among different resources mean that consumers must adopt a range of strategies to meet their physiological needs. We review the emerging work on omega-3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids, focusing predominantly on predator-prey interactions, to illustrate that trade-off between capacities to consume resources rich in vital biomolecules and internal synthesis capacity drives differences in phenotype and fitness of consumers. This can then feedback to impact ecosystem functioning. We outline how focus on vital dietary biomolecules in eco-eco-devo dynamics can improve our understanding of anthropogenic changes across multiple levels of biological organization.

Linking omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids in natural diet with brain size of wild consumers

Omega-3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 LC-PUFA) are key structural lipids and their dietary intake is essential for brain development of virtually all vertebrates. The importance of n-3 LC-PUFA has been demonstrated in clinical and laboratory studies, but little is known about how differences in the availability of n-3 LC-PUFA in natural prey influence brain development of wild consumers. Consumers foraging at the interface of aquatic and terrestrial food webs can differ substantially in their intake of n-3 LC-PUFA, which may lead to differences in brain development, yet this hypothesis remains to be tested. Here we use the previously demonstrated shift towards higher reliance on n-3 LC-PUFA deprived terrestrial prey of native brown trout Salmo trutta living in sympatry with invasive brook trout Salvelinus fontinalis to explore this hypothesis. We found that the content of n-3 LC-PUFA in muscle tissues of brown trout decreased with increasing consumption of n-3 LC-PUFA deprived terrestrial prey. Brain volume was positively related to the content of the n-3 LC-PUFA, docosahexaenoic acid, in muscle tissues of brown trout. Our study thus suggests that increased reliance on diets low in n-3 LC-PUFA, such as terrestrial subsidies, can have a significant negative impact on brain development of wild trout. Our findings provide the first evidence of how brains of wild vertebrate consumers response to scarcity of n-3 LC-PUFA content in natural prey.

Molecular Regulation of Biosynthesis of Long Chain Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids in Atlantic Salmon

Salmon is a rich source of health-promoting omega-3 long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 LC-PUFA), such as eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA, 20:5n-3) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA, 22:6n-3). The LC-PUFA biosynthetic pathway in Atlantic salmon is one of the most studied compared to other teleosts. This has largely been due to the massive replacement of LC-PUFA-rich ingredients in aquafeeds with terrestrial plant oils devoid of these essential fatty acids (EFA) which ultimately pushed dietary content towards the minimal requirement of EFA. The practice would also reduce tissue content of n-3 LC-PUFA compromising the nutritional value of salmon to the human consumer. These necessitated detailed studies of endogenous biosynthetic capability as a contributor to these EFA. This review seeks to provide a comprehensive and concise overview of the current knowledge about the molecular genetics of PUFA biosynthesis in Atlantic salmon, highlighting the enzymology and nutritional regulation as well as transcriptional control networks. Furthermore, we discuss the impact of genome duplication on the complexity of salmon LC-PUFA pathway and highlight probable implications on endogenous biosynthetic capabilities. Finally, we have also compiled and made available a large RNAseq dataset from 316 salmon liver samples together with an R-script visualization resource to aid in explorative and hypothesis-driven research into salmon lipid metabolism.