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Camilleri TL, Piper MDW, Robker RL, Dowling DK. Sex-specific transgenerational effects of diet on offspring life history and physiology. Proc Biol Sci 2024; 291:20240062. [PMID: 38628121 PMCID: PMC11021933 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2024.0062] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2024] [Accepted: 03/21/2024] [Indexed: 04/19/2024] Open
Abstract
Dietary variation in males and females can shape the expression of offspring life histories and physiology. However, the relative contributions of maternal and paternal dietary variation to phenotypic expression of latter generations is currently unknown. We provided male and female Drosophila melanogaster grandparents with diets differing in sucrose concentration prior to reproduction, and similarly subjected their grandoffspring to the same treatments. We then investigated the phenotypic consequences of this dietary variation among the grandsons and granddaughters. We observed transgenerational effects of dietary sucrose, mediated through the grandmaternal lineage, which mimic the direct effects of sucrose on lifespan, with opposing patterns across sexes; low sucrose increased female, but decreased male, lifespan. Dietary mismatching of grandoffspring-grandparent diets increased lifespan and reproductive success, and moderated triglyceride levels of grandoffspring, providing insights into the physiological underpinnings of the complex transgenerational effects on life histories.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tara-Lyn Camilleri
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria 3800, Australia
- Department of Biology, University of Oxford, Oxford, Oxfordshire, UK
| | - Matthew D. W. Piper
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria 3800, Australia
| | - Rebecca L. Robker
- School of Biomedical Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria 3800, Australia
- School of Paediatrics and Reproductive Health, Robinson Research Institute, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide 5005, Australia
| | - Damian K. Dowling
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria 3800, Australia
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2
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Jimenez-Gonzalez A, Ansaloni F, Nebendahl C, Alavioon G, Murray D, Robak W, Sanges R, Müller F, Immler S. Paternal starvation affects metabolic gene expression during zebrafish offspring development and lifelong fitness. Mol Ecol 2024; 33:e17296. [PMID: 38361456 DOI: 10.1111/mec.17296] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/19/2023] [Revised: 01/03/2024] [Accepted: 01/12/2024] [Indexed: 02/17/2024]
Abstract
Dietary restriction in the form of fasting is a putative key to a healthier and longer life, but these benefits may come at a trade-off with reproductive fitness and may affect the following generation(s). The potential inter- and transgenerational effects of long-term fasting and starvation are particularly poorly understood in vertebrates when they originate from the paternal line. We utilised the externally fertilising zebrafish amenable to a split-egg clutch design to explore the male-specific effects of fasting/starvation on fertility and fitness of offspring independently of maternal contribution. Eighteen days of fasting resulted in reduced fertility in exposed males. While average offspring survival was not affected, we detected increased larval growth rate in F1 offspring from starved males and more malformed embryos at 24 h post-fertilisation in F2 offspring produced by F1 offspring from starved males. Comparing the transcriptomes of F1 embryos sired by starved and fed fathers revealed robust and reproducible increased expression of muscle composition genes but lower expression of lipid metabolism and lysosome genes in embryos from starved fathers. A large proportion of these genes showed enrichment in the yolk syncytial layer suggesting gene regulatory responses associated with metabolism of nutrients through paternal effects on extra-embryonic tissues which are loaded with maternal factors. We compared the embryo transcriptomes to published adult transcriptome datasets and found comparable repressive effects of starvation on metabolism-associated genes. These similarities suggest a physiologically relevant, directed and potentially adaptive response transmitted by the father, independently from the offspring's nutritional state, which was defined by the mother.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ada Jimenez-Gonzalez
- Institute of Cancer and Genomic Sciences, College of Medical and Dental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
| | - Federico Ansaloni
- Institute of Cancer and Genomic Sciences, College of Medical and Dental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
- Central RNA Laboratory, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia (IIT), Genova, Italy
- Area of Neuroscience, Scuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi Avanzati (SISSA), Trieste, Italy
| | | | - Ghazal Alavioon
- Department of Evolutionary Biology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - David Murray
- School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK
- Centre for Environment, Fisheries, and Aquaculture Science, Lowestoft, UK
| | - Weronika Robak
- School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK
| | - Remo Sanges
- Central RNA Laboratory, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia (IIT), Genova, Italy
- Area of Neuroscience, Scuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi Avanzati (SISSA), Trieste, Italy
| | - Ferenc Müller
- Institute of Cancer and Genomic Sciences, College of Medical and Dental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
| | - Simone Immler
- Department of Evolutionary Biology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
- School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK
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3
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Narayan VP, Wasana N, Wilson AJ, Chenoweth SF. Misalignment of plastic and evolutionary responses of lifespan to novel carbohydrate diets. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2024; 11:231732. [PMID: 38234441 PMCID: PMC10791524 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.231732] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/13/2023] [Accepted: 12/14/2023] [Indexed: 01/19/2024]
Abstract
Diet elicits varied effects on longevity across a wide range of animal species where dietary discordance between an organisms' evolutionary and developmental dietary history is increasingly recognized to play a critical role in shaping lifespan. However, whether such changes, predominantly assessed in a single generation, lead to evolutionary shifts in lifespan remains unclear. In this study, we used an experimental evolution approach to test whether changes in an organisms' evolutionary and developmental dietary history, specifically carbohydrate content, causes lifespan evolution in Drosophila serrata. After 30 generations, we investigated the evolutionary potential of lifespan in response to four novel diets that varied systematically in their ratio of carbohydrate-protein content. We also examined developmental plasticity effects using a set of control populations that were raised on the four novel environments allowing us to assess the extent to which plastic responses of lifespan mirrored adaptive responses observed following experimental evolution. Both high- and low-carbohydrate diets elicited plastic effects on lifespan; however, the plastic responses for lifespan to developmental diets bore little resemblance to the evolved responses on evolutionary diets. Understanding the dietary conditions regulating the match/mismatch of plastic and evolved responses will be important in determining whether a particular match/mismatch combination is adaptive for lifespan. While the differences in evolutionary diet by developmental diet interactions are only beginning to be elucidated, this study lays the foundation for future investigations of carbohydrate contributions to evolved and plastic effects on health and lifespan.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vikram P. Narayan
- School of the Environment, The University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia
- College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
| | - Nidarshani Wasana
- School of the Environment, The University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia
| | - Alastair J. Wilson
- College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
| | - Stephen F. Chenoweth
- School of the Environment, The University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia
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4
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Mc Auley MT. An evolutionary perspective of lifespan and epigenetic inheritance. Exp Gerontol 2023; 179:112256. [PMID: 37460026 DOI: 10.1016/j.exger.2023.112256] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/21/2023] [Revised: 07/04/2023] [Accepted: 07/12/2023] [Indexed: 07/21/2023]
Abstract
In the last decade epigenetics has come to the fore as a discipline which is central to biogerontology. Age associated epigenetic changes are routinely linked with pathologies, including cardiovascular disease, cancer, and Alzheimer's disease; moreover, epigenetic clocks are capable of correlating biological age with chronological age in many species including humans. Recent intriguing empirical observations also suggest that inherited epigenetic effects could influence lifespan/longevity in a variety of organisms. If this is the case, an imperative exists to reconcile lifespan/longevity associated inherited epigenetic processes with the evolution of ageing. This review will critically evaluate inherited epigenetic effects from an evolutionary perspective. The overarching aim is to integrate the evidence which suggests epigenetic inheritance modulates lifespan/longevity with the main evolutionary theories of ageing.
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5
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Wang M, Shen Y, Tan Z, Yasen A, Fan B, Shen X. Metabolomics analysis of dietary restriction results in a longer lifespan due to alters of amino acid levels in larval hemolymph of Bombyx mori. Sci Rep 2023; 13:6828. [PMID: 37100857 PMCID: PMC10133320 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-34132-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2023] [Accepted: 04/25/2023] [Indexed: 04/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Dietary restriction (DR) has been a very important discovery in modern aging biology research. Its remarkable anti-aging effect has been proved in a variety of organisms, including members of Lepidoptera, but mechanisms by which DR increases longevity are not fully understood. By using the silkworm (Bombyx mori), a model of lepidopteran insect, we established a DR model, isolated hemolymph from fifth instar larvae and employed LC-MS/MS metabolomics to analyze the effect of DR on the endogenous metabolites of silkworm, and tried to clarify the mechanism of DR to prolong lifespan. We identified the potential biomarkers by analyzing the metabolites of the DR and control groups. Then, we constructed relevant metabolic pathways and networks with MetaboAnalyst. DR significantly prolonged the lifespan of silkworm. The differential metabolites between the DR and control groups were mainly organic acids (including amino acid), and amines. These metabolites are involved in metabolic pathways such as amino acid metabolism. Further analysis showed that, the levels of 17 amino acids were significantly changed in the DR group, indicating that the prolonged lifespan was mainly due to changes in amino acid metabolism. Furthermore, we identified 41 and 28 unique differential metabolites in males and females, respectively, demonstrating sex differences in biological responses to DR. The DR group showed higher antioxidant capacity and lower lipid peroxidation and inflammatory precursors, with differences between the sexes. These results provide evidence for various DR anti-aging mechanisms at the metabolic level and novel reference for the future development of DR-simulating drugs or foods.
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Affiliation(s)
- Meixian Wang
- Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Sericultural Biology and Biotechnology, College of Biotechnology, Jiangsu University of Science and Technology, Zhenjiang, 212100, Jiangsu, China
- Key Laboratory of Silkworm and Mulberry Genetic Improvement, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Sericultural Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Zhenjiang, 212100, Jiangsu, China
| | - Yichen Shen
- Department of Plastic Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310009, Zhejiang, China
| | - Zhicheng Tan
- Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Sericultural Biology and Biotechnology, College of Biotechnology, Jiangsu University of Science and Technology, Zhenjiang, 212100, Jiangsu, China
| | - Ayinuer Yasen
- Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Sericultural Biology and Biotechnology, College of Biotechnology, Jiangsu University of Science and Technology, Zhenjiang, 212100, Jiangsu, China
- Key Laboratory of Silkworm and Mulberry Genetic Improvement, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Sericultural Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Zhenjiang, 212100, Jiangsu, China
| | - Bingyan Fan
- Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Sericultural Biology and Biotechnology, College of Biotechnology, Jiangsu University of Science and Technology, Zhenjiang, 212100, Jiangsu, China
- Key Laboratory of Silkworm and Mulberry Genetic Improvement, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Sericultural Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Zhenjiang, 212100, Jiangsu, China
| | - Xingjia Shen
- Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Sericultural Biology and Biotechnology, College of Biotechnology, Jiangsu University of Science and Technology, Zhenjiang, 212100, Jiangsu, China.
- Key Laboratory of Silkworm and Mulberry Genetic Improvement, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Sericultural Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Zhenjiang, 212100, Jiangsu, China.
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6
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Ivimey-Cook ER, Murray DS, de Coriolis JC, Edden N, Immler S, Maklakov AA. Fasting increases investment in soma upon refeeding at the cost of gamete quality in zebrafish. Proc Biol Sci 2023; 290:20221556. [PMID: 37040805 PMCID: PMC10089719 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2022.1556] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/10/2022] [Accepted: 03/14/2023] [Indexed: 04/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Fasting increases lifespan in invertebrates, improves biomarkers of health in vertebrates and is increasingly proposed as a promising route to improve human health. Nevertheless, little is known about how fasted animals use resources upon refeeding, and how such decisions affect putative trade-offs between somatic growth and repair, reproduction and gamete quality. Such fasting-induced trade-offs are based on strong theoretical foundations and have been recently discovered in invertebrates, but the data on vertebrates are lacking. Here, we report that fasted female zebrafish, Danio rerio, increase investment in soma upon refeeding, but it comes at a cost of egg quality. Specifically, an increase in fin regrowth was accompanied by a reduction in 24 h post-fertilization offspring survival. Refed males showed a reduction in sperm velocity and impaired 24 h post-fertilization offspring survival. These findings underscore the necessity of considering the impact on reproduction when assessing evolutionary and biomedical implications of lifespan-extending treatments in females and males and call for careful evaluation of the effects of intermittent fasting on fertilization.
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Affiliation(s)
- Edward R. Ivimey-Cook
- School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norfolk NR4 7TJ, UK
- Institute of Biodiversity, Animal Health and Comparative Medicine, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK
| | - David S. Murray
- Collaborative Centre for Sustainable Use of the Seas (CCSUS), School of Environmental Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norfolk NR4 7TJ, UK
- The Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (Cefas), Lowestoft, Suffolk NR33 0HT, UK
| | | | - Nathan Edden
- School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norfolk NR4 7TJ, UK
| | - Simone Immler
- School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norfolk NR4 7TJ, UK
| | - Alexei A. Maklakov
- School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norfolk NR4 7TJ, UK
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7
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Aminzadeh-Gohari S, Kofler B, Herzog C. Dietary restriction in senolysis and prevention and treatment of disease. Crit Rev Food Sci Nutr 2022; 64:5242-5268. [PMID: 36484738 PMCID: PMC7616065 DOI: 10.1080/10408398.2022.2153355] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Aging represents a key risk factor for a plethora of diseases. Targeting detrimental processes which occur during aging, especially before onset of age-related disease, could provide drastic improvements in healthspan. There is increasing evidence that dietary restriction (DR), including caloric restriction, fasting, or fasting-mimicking diets, extend both lifespan and healthspan. This has sparked interest in the use of dietary regimens as a non-pharmacological means to slow aging and prevent disease. Here, we review the current evidence on the molecular mechanisms underlying DR-induced health improvements, including removal of senescent cells, metabolic reprogramming, and epigenetic rejuvenation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sepideh Aminzadeh-Gohari
- Research Program for Receptor Biochemistry and Tumor Metabollism, Department of Pediatrics, University Hospital of the Paracelsus Medical University, Salzburg, Austria
- European Translational Oncology Prevention and Screening Institute, Universität Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria
- Research Institute for Biomedical Ageing, Universität Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria
| | - Barbara Kofler
- Research Program for Receptor Biochemistry and Tumor Metabollism, Department of Pediatrics, University Hospital of the Paracelsus Medical University, Salzburg, Austria
| | - Chiara Herzog
- European Translational Oncology Prevention and Screening Institute, Universität Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria
- Research Institute for Biomedical Ageing, Universität Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria
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8
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Duxbury EML, Carlsson H, Sales K, Sultanova Z, Immler S, Chapman T, Maklakov AA. Multigenerational downregulation of insulin/IGF-1 signaling in adulthood improves lineage survival, reproduction, and fitness in Caenorhabditis elegans supporting the developmental theory of ageing. Evolution 2022; 76:2829-2845. [PMID: 36199198 PMCID: PMC10092551 DOI: 10.1111/evo.14640] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2022] [Revised: 07/18/2022] [Accepted: 09/08/2022] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Abstract
Adulthood-only downregulation of insulin/IGF-1 signaling (IIS), an evolutionarily conserved pathway regulating resource allocation between somatic maintenance and reproduction, increases life span without fecundity cost in the nematode, Caenorhabditis elegans. However, long-term multigenerational effects of reduced IIS remain unexplored and are proposed to carry costs for offspring quality. To test this hypothesis, we ran a mutation accumulation (MA) experiment and downregulated IIS in half of the 400 MA lines by silencing daf-2 gene expression using RNA interference (RNAi) across 40 generations. Contrary to the prediction, adulthood-only daf-2 RNAi reduced extinction of MA lines both under UV-induced and spontaneous MA. Fitness of the surviving UV-induced MA lines was higher under daf-2 RNAi. Reduced IIS increased intergenerational F1 offspring fitness under UV stress but had no quantifiable transgenerational effects. Functional hrde-1 was required for the benefits of multigenerational daf-2 RNAi. Overall, we found net benefit to fitness from multigenerational reduction of IIS and the benefits became more apparent under stress. Because reduced daf-2 expression during development carries fitness costs, we suggest that our findings are best explained by the developmental theory of ageing, which maintains that the decline in the force of selection with age results in poorly regulated gene expression in adulthood.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elizabeth M L Duxbury
- School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich, NR4 7TJ, United Kingdom
| | - Hanne Carlsson
- School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich, NR4 7TJ, United Kingdom
| | - Kris Sales
- School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich, NR4 7TJ, United Kingdom
| | - Zahida Sultanova
- School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich, NR4 7TJ, United Kingdom
| | - Simone Immler
- School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich, NR4 7TJ, United Kingdom
| | - Tracey Chapman
- School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich, NR4 7TJ, United Kingdom
| | - Alexei A Maklakov
- School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich, NR4 7TJ, United Kingdom
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9
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Camilleri T, Piper MDW, Robker RL, Dowling DK. Maternal and paternal sugar consumption interact to modify offspring life history and physiology. Funct Ecol 2022. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2435.14024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Rebecca L. Robker
- School of Biomedicine Robinson Research Institute The University of Adelaide Adelaide SA Australia
- School of Biomedical Sciences Monash University Clayton VIC Australia
| | - Damian K. Dowling
- School of Biological Sciences Monash University Clayton VIC Australia
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10
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Kronholm I. Evolution of anticipatory effects mediated by epigenetic changes. ENVIRONMENTAL EPIGENETICS 2022; 8:dvac007. [PMID: 35475265 PMCID: PMC9031056 DOI: 10.1093/eep/dvac007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2022] [Revised: 03/07/2022] [Accepted: 03/14/2022] [Indexed: 05/20/2023]
Abstract
Anticipatory effects mediated by epigenetic changes occur when parents modify the phenotype of their offspring by making epigenetic changes in their gametes, guided by information from an environmental cue. To investigate when do anticipatory effects mediated by epigenetic changes evolve in a fluctuating environment, I use an individual-based simulation model with explicit genetic architecture. The model allows for the population to respond to environmental changes by evolving plasticity, bet hedging, or by tracking the environment with genetic adaptation, in addition to the evolution of anticipatory effects. The results show that anticipatory effects evolve when the environmental cue provides reliable information about the environment and the environment changes at intermediate rates, provided that fitness costs of anticipatory effects are rather low. Moreover, evolution of anticipatory effects is quite robust to different genetic architectures when reliability of the environmental cue is high. Anticipatory effects always give smaller fitness benefits than within-generation plasticity, suggesting a possible reason for generally small observed anticipatory effects in empirical studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ilkka Kronholm
- *Correspondence address. Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Jyväskylä, P.O. Box 35, Jyväskylä 40014, Finland. Tel: +358 14 617 239; Fax: +358 14 617 239; E-mail:
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11
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Sultanova Z, Ivimey-Cook ER, Chapman T, Maklakov AA. Fitness benefits of dietary restriction. Proc Biol Sci 2021; 288:20211787. [PMID: 34814748 PMCID: PMC8611328 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2021.1787] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/10/2021] [Accepted: 11/02/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Dietary restriction (DR) improves survival across a wide range of taxa yet remains poorly understood. The key unresolved question is whether this evolutionarily conserved response to temporary lack of food is adaptive. Recent work suggests that early-life DR reduces survival and reproduction when nutrients subsequently become plentiful, thereby challenging adaptive explanations. A new hypothesis maintains that increased survival under DR results from reduced costs of overfeeding. We tested the adaptive value of DR response in an outbred population of Drosophila melanogaster fruit flies. We found that DR females did not suffer from reduced survival upon subsequent re-feeding and had increased reproduction and mating success compared to their continuously fully fed (FF) counterparts. The increase in post-DR reproductive performance was of sufficient magnitude that females experiencing early-life DR had the same total fecundity as continuously FF individuals. Our results suggest that the DR response is adaptive and increases fitness when temporary food shortages cease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zahida Sultanova
- School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich Research Park, Norwich NR4 7TU, UK
| | - Edward R. Ivimey-Cook
- School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich Research Park, Norwich NR4 7TU, UK
| | - Tracey Chapman
- School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich Research Park, Norwich NR4 7TU, UK
| | - Alexei A. Maklakov
- School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich Research Park, Norwich NR4 7TU, UK
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12
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Carlsson H, Ivimey-Cook E, Duxbury EML, Edden N, Sales K, Maklakov AA. Ageing as "early-life inertia": Disentangling life-history trade-offs along a lifetime of an individual. Evol Lett 2021; 5:551-564. [PMID: 34621540 PMCID: PMC8484722 DOI: 10.1002/evl3.254] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2021] [Revised: 07/19/2021] [Accepted: 08/13/2021] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
The theory that ageing evolves because of competitive resource allocation between the soma and the germline has been challenged by studies showing that somatic maintenance can be improved without impairing reproduction. However, it has been suggested that cost‐free improvement in somatic maintenance is possible only under a narrow range of benign conditions. Here, we show that experimental downregulation of insulin/IGF‐1 signaling (IIS) in C. elegans nematodes, a robustly reproducible life span‐ and health span‐extending treatment, reduces fitness in a complex variable environment when initiated during development but does not reduce fitness when initiated in adulthood. Thus, our results show that the costs and benefits of reduced IIS can be uncoupled when organisms inhabit variable environments, and, therefore, do not provide support for the resource allocation theory. Our findings support the theory that the force of natural selection on gene expression in evolutionarily conserved signaling pathways that shape life‐history traits declines after the onset of reproduction resulting in organismal senescence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hanne Carlsson
- School of Biological Sciences University of East Anglia Norwich NR4 7TJ United Kingdom
| | - Edward Ivimey-Cook
- School of Biological Sciences University of East Anglia Norwich NR4 7TJ United Kingdom
| | - Elizabeth M L Duxbury
- School of Biological Sciences University of East Anglia Norwich NR4 7TJ United Kingdom
| | - Nathan Edden
- School of Biological Sciences University of East Anglia Norwich NR4 7TJ United Kingdom
| | - Kris Sales
- School of Biological Sciences University of East Anglia Norwich NR4 7TJ United Kingdom
| | - Alexei A Maklakov
- School of Biological Sciences University of East Anglia Norwich NR4 7TJ United Kingdom
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