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Lesur I, Rogier O, Sow MD, Boury C, Duplan A, Garnier A, Senhaji-Rachik A, Civan P, Daron J, Delaunay A, Duvaux L, Benoit V, Guichoux E, Le Provost G, Sanou E, Ambroise C, Plomion C, Salse J, Segura V, Tost J, Maury S. A strategy for studying epigenetic diversity in natural populations: proof of concept in poplar and oak. JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL BOTANY 2024; 75:5568-5584. [PMID: 38889253 DOI: 10.1093/jxb/erae266] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/18/2023] [Accepted: 06/17/2024] [Indexed: 06/20/2024]
Abstract
In the last 20 years, several techniques have been developed for quantifying DNA methylation, the most studied epigenetic marks in eukaryotes, including the gold standard method, whole-genome bisulfite sequencing (WGBS). WGBS quantifies genome-wide DNA methylation but has several inconveniences rendering it less suitable for population-scale epigenetic studies. The high cost of deep sequencing and the large amounts of data generated prompted us to seek an alternative approach. Restricting studies to parts of the genome would be a satisfactory alternative had there not been a major limitation: the need to select upstream targets corresponding to differentially methylated regions as targets. Given the need to study large numbers of samples, we propose a strategy for investigating DNA methylation variation in natural populations, taking into account the structural complexity of genomes, their size, and their content in unique coding regions versus repeated regions as transposable elements. We first identified regions of highly variable DNA methylation in a subset of genotypes representative of the biological diversity in the population by WGBS. We then analysed the variations of DNA methylation in these targeted regions at the population level by sequencing capture bisulfite (SeqCapBis). The entire strategy was then validated by applying it to another species. Our strategy was developed as a proof of concept on natural populations of two forest species: Populus nigra and Quercus petraea.
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Affiliation(s)
- Isabelle Lesur
- INRAE, Univ. Bordeaux, BIOGECO, F-33610 Cestas, France
- HelixVenture, F-33700 Mérignac, France
| | | | - Mamadou Dia Sow
- INRAE/UCA UMR GDEC 1095. 5 Chemin de Beaulieu, F-63100 Clermont Ferrand, France
- P2e, INRAE, Université d'Orleans, EA 1207 USC 1328, F-45067 Orleans, France
| | | | - Alexandre Duplan
- INRAE, ONF, BioForA, F-45075 Orléans, France
- P2e, INRAE, Université d'Orleans, EA 1207 USC 1328, F-45067 Orleans, France
| | - Abel Garnier
- Centre National de Recherche en Génomique Humaine, CEA-Institut de Biologie, François Jacob, Université Paris-Saclay, F-91000 Evry, France
| | | | - Peter Civan
- INRAE/UCA UMR GDEC 1095. 5 Chemin de Beaulieu, F-63100 Clermont Ferrand, France
| | - Josquin Daron
- Institut Pasteur, Université Paris Cité, CNRS UMR2000, Insect-Virus Interactions Unit, F-75724 Paris, France
| | - Alain Delaunay
- P2e, INRAE, Université d'Orleans, EA 1207 USC 1328, F-45067 Orleans, France
| | | | | | | | | | - Edmond Sanou
- LaMME, 23 Bd. de France, F-91037 Évry Cedex, France
| | | | | | - Jérôme Salse
- INRAE/UCA UMR GDEC 1095. 5 Chemin de Beaulieu, F-63100 Clermont Ferrand, France
| | - Vincent Segura
- INRAE, ONF, BioForA, F-45075 Orléans, France
- UMR AGAP Institut, Univ Montpellier, CIRAD, INRAE, Institut Agro Montpellier, F-34398 Montpellier, France
| | - Jörg Tost
- Centre National de Recherche en Génomique Humaine, CEA-Institut de Biologie, François Jacob, Université Paris-Saclay, F-91000 Evry, France
| | - Stéphane Maury
- P2e, INRAE, Université d'Orleans, EA 1207 USC 1328, F-45067 Orleans, France
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2
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Yi SV. Epigenetics Research in Evolutionary Biology: Perspectives on Timescales and Mechanisms. Mol Biol Evol 2024; 41:msae170. [PMID: 39235767 PMCID: PMC11376073 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msae170] [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: 06/28/2024] [Revised: 08/06/2024] [Accepted: 08/08/2024] [Indexed: 09/06/2024] Open
Abstract
Epigenetics research in evolutionary biology encompasses a variety of research areas, from regulation of gene expression to inheritance of environmentally mediated phenotypes. Such divergent research foci can occasionally render the umbrella term "epigenetics" ambiguous. Here I discuss several areas of contemporary epigenetics research in the context of evolutionary biology, aiming to provide balanced views across timescales and molecular mechanisms. The importance of epigenetics in development is now being assessed in many nonmodel species. These studies not only confirm the importance of epigenetic marks in developmental processes, but also highlight the significant diversity in epigenetic regulatory mechanisms across taxa. Further, these comparative epigenomic studies have begun to show promise toward enhancing our understanding of how regulatory programs evolve. A key property of epigenetic marks is that they can be inherited along mitotic cell lineages, and epigenetic differences that occur during early development can have lasting consequences on the organismal phenotypes. Thus, epigenetic marks may play roles in short-term (within an organism's lifetime or to the next generation) adaptation and phenotypic plasticity. However, the extent to which observed epigenetic variation occurs independently of genetic influences remains uncertain, due to the widespread impact of genetics on epigenetic variation and the limited availability of comprehensive (epi)genomic resources from most species. While epigenetic marks can be inherited independently of genetic sequences in some species, there is little evidence that such "transgenerational inheritance" is a general phenomenon. Rather, molecular mechanisms of epigenetic inheritance are highly variable between species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Soojin V Yi
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Marine Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA 93106, USA
- Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA 93106, USA
- Neuroscience Research Institute, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA 93106, USA
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3
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Sharma G, Haak D, Westwood JH, Askew S, Barney JN. Transgenerational phenotypic responses to herbicide stress are more rapid than to shade and simulated herbivory in Arabidopsis. THE PLANT JOURNAL : FOR CELL AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY 2024; 119:2375-2384. [PMID: 39024389 DOI: 10.1111/tpj.16923] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/22/2023] [Revised: 06/13/2024] [Accepted: 06/26/2024] [Indexed: 07/20/2024]
Abstract
Weeds in agricultural settings continually adapt to stresses from ecological and anthropogenic sources, in some cases leading to resistant populations. However, consequences of repeated sub-lethal exposure of these stressors on fitness and stress "memory" over generations remain poorly understood. We measured plant performance over a transgenerational experiment with Arabidopsis thaliana where plants were exposed to sub-lethal stress induced by the herbicides glyphosate or trifloxysulfuron, stresses from clipping or shading in either one (G1) or four successive generations (G1-G4), and control plants that never received stress. We found that fourth-generation (G4) plants that had been subjected to three generations of glyphosate or trifloxysulfuron stress produced higher post-stress biomass, seed weight, and rosette area as compared to that produced by plants that experienced stress only in the first generation (G1). By the same measure, clipping and shade were more influential on floral development time (shade) and seed weight (clipping) but did not show responsive phenotypes for vegetative metrics after multiple generations. Overall, we found that plants exhibited more rapid transgenerational vegetative "stress memory" to herbicides while reproductive plasticity was stressor dependent and similar between clipping/shade and anthropogenic stressors. Our study suggests that maternal plant stress memory aids next-generation plants to respond and survive better under the same stressors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gourav Sharma
- School of Plant and Environmental Sciences, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia, 24061, USA
| | - David Haak
- School of Plant and Environmental Sciences, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia, 24061, USA
| | - James H Westwood
- School of Plant and Environmental Sciences, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia, 24061, USA
| | - Shawn Askew
- School of Plant and Environmental Sciences, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia, 24061, USA
| | - Jacob N Barney
- School of Plant and Environmental Sciences, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia, 24061, USA
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4
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Aycan M, Nahar L, Baslam M, Mitsui T. Transgenerational plasticity in salinity tolerance of rice: unraveling non-genetic phenotypic modifications and environmental influences. JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL BOTANY 2024; 75:5037-5053. [PMID: 38727615 DOI: 10.1093/jxb/erae211] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/01/2024] [Accepted: 05/08/2024] [Indexed: 08/29/2024]
Abstract
Transgenerational plasticity in plants enables rapid adaptation to environmental changes, allowing organisms and their offspring to adapt to the environment without altering their underlying DNA. In this study, we investigated the transgenerational plasticity in salinity tolerance of rice plants using a reciprocal transplant experimental strategy. Our aim was to assess whether non-genetic environment-induced phenotypic modifications and transgenerational salinity affect the salinity tolerance of progeny while excluding nuclear genomic factors for two generations. Using salt-tolerant and salt-sensitive rice genotypes, we observed that the parentally salt-stressed salt-sensitive genotype displayed greater growth performance, photosynthetic activity, yield performance, and transcriptional responses than the parentally non-stressed salt-sensitive plants under salt stress conditions. Surprisingly, salt stress-exposed salt-tolerant progeny did not exhibit as much salinity tolerance as salt stress-exposed salt-sensitive progeny under salt stress. Our findings indicate that the phenotypes of offspring plants differed based on the environment experienced by their ancestors, resulting in heritable transgenerational phenotypic modifications in salt-sensitive genotypes via maternal effects. These results elucidated the mechanisms underlying transgenerational plasticity in salinity tolerance, providing valuable insights into how plants respond to changing environmental conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Murat Aycan
- Laboratory of Biochemistry, Faculty of Agriculture, Niigata University, Niigata 950-2181, Japan
| | - Lutfun Nahar
- Department of Life and Food Sciences, Graduate School of Science and Technology, Niigata University, Niigata 950-2181, Japan
- Department of Agricultural Botany, Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University, Dhaka 1207, Bangladesh
| | - Marouane Baslam
- Laboratory of Biochemistry, Faculty of Agriculture, Niigata University, Niigata 950-2181, Japan
- GrowSmart, Seoul 03129, Republic of Korea
- Centre d'Agrobiotechnologie et Bioingénierie, Unité de Recherche labellisée CNRST (Centre AgroBio-tech-URL-CNRST-05), Université Cadi Ayyad, Marrakech, 40000, Morocco
- Laboratory of Agro-Food, Biotechnologies and Valorization of Plant Bioresources (AGROBIOVAL), Department of Biology, Faculty of Science Semlalia, Université Cadi Ayyad, Marrakech, 40000, Morocco
| | - Toshiaki Mitsui
- Laboratory of Biochemistry, Faculty of Agriculture, Niigata University, Niigata 950-2181, Japan
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5
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Miryeganeh M, Armitage DW. Epigenetic responses of trees to environmental stress in the context of climate change. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2024. [PMID: 39192567 DOI: 10.1111/brv.13132] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/14/2023] [Revised: 08/13/2024] [Accepted: 08/14/2024] [Indexed: 08/29/2024]
Abstract
In long-lived tree populations, when environmental change outpaces rates of evolutionary adaptation, plasticity in traits related to stress tolerance, dormancy, and dispersal may be vital for preventing extinction. While a population's genetic background partly determines its ability to adapt to a changing environment, so too do the many types of epigenetic modifications that occur within and among populations, which vary on timescales orders of magnitude faster than the emergence of new beneficial alleles. Consequently, phenotypic plasticity driven by epigenetic modification may be especially critical for sessile, long-lived organisms such as trees that must rely on this plasticity to keep pace with rapid anthropogenic environmental change. While studies have reported large effects of DNA methylation, histone modification, and non-coding RNAs on the expression of stress-tolerance genes and resulting phenotypic responses, little is known about the role of these effects in non-model plants and particularly in trees. Here, we review new findings in plant epigenetics with particular relevance to the ability of trees to adapt to or escape stressors associated with rapid climate change. Such findings include specific epigenetic influences over drought, heat, and salinity tolerance, as well as dormancy and dispersal traits. We also highlight promising findings concerning transgenerational inheritance of an epigenetic 'stress memory' in plants. As epigenetic information is becoming increasingly easy to obtain, we close by outlining ways in which ecologists can use epigenetic information better to inform population management and forecasting efforts. Understanding the molecular mechanisms behind phenotypic plasticity and stress memory in tree species offers a promising path towards a mechanistic understanding of trees' responses to climate change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matin Miryeganeh
- Integrative Community Ecology Unit, Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, Onna-son, Okinawa, 904-0495, Japan
| | - David W Armitage
- Integrative Community Ecology Unit, Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, Onna-son, Okinawa, 904-0495, Japan
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6
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Aykanat T, McLennan D, Metcalfe NB, Prokkola JM. Early survival in Atlantic salmon is associated with parental genotypes at loci linked to timing of maturation. Evolution 2024; 78:1441-1452. [PMID: 38736399 DOI: 10.1093/evolut/qpae072] [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: 01/08/2024] [Revised: 04/25/2024] [Accepted: 05/09/2024] [Indexed: 05/14/2024]
Abstract
Large effect loci often contain genes with critical developmental functions and potentially broad effects across life stages. However, their life stage-specific fitness consequences are rarely explored. In Atlantic salmon, variation in two large-effect loci, six6 and vgll3, is linked to age at maturity and several physiological and behavioral traits in early life. By genotyping the progeny of wild Atlantic salmon that were planted into natural streams with nutrient manipulations, we tested if genetic variation in these loci is associated with survival in early life. We found that higher early-life survival was linked to the genotype associated with late maturation in the vgll3, but with early maturation in the six6 locus. These effects were significant in high nutrients but not in low-nutrient streams. The differences in early survival were not explained by additive genetic effects in the offspring generation but by maternal genotypes in the six6 locus and by both parents' genotypes in the vgll3 locus. Our results suggest that indirect genetic effects of large-effect loci can be significant determinants of offspring fitness. This study demonstrates an intriguing case of how large-effect loci can exhibit complex fitness associations across life stages in the wild and indicates that predicting evolutionary dynamics is difficult.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tutku Aykanat
- Organismal and Evolutionary Biology Research Programme, Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Darryl McLennan
- School of Biodiversity, One Health and Veterinary Medicine, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom
| | - Neil B Metcalfe
- School of Biodiversity, One Health and Veterinary Medicine, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom
| | - Jenni M Prokkola
- Organismal and Evolutionary Biology Research Programme, Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
- Natural Resources Institute Finland (LUKE), Oulu, Finland
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7
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Anka IZ, Uren Webster TM, Berbel-Filho WM, Hitchings M, Overland B, Weller S, Garcia de Leaniz C, Consuegra S. Microbiome and epigenetic variation in wild fish with low genetic diversity. Nat Commun 2024; 15:4725. [PMID: 38830879 PMCID: PMC11148108 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-49162-8] [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: 05/11/2023] [Accepted: 05/23/2024] [Indexed: 06/05/2024] Open
Abstract
Non-genetic sources of phenotypic variation, such as the epigenome and the microbiome, could be important contributors to adaptive variation for species with low genetic diversity. However, little is known about the complex interaction between these factors and the genetic diversity of the host, particularly in wild populations. Here, we examine the skin microbiome composition of two closely-related mangrove killifish species with different mating systems (self-fertilising and outcrossing) under sympatric and allopatric conditions. This allows us to partition the influence of the genotype and the environment on their microbiome and (previously described) epigenetic profiles. We find the diversity and community composition of the skin microbiome are strongly shaped by the environment and, to a lesser extent, by species-specific influences. Heterozygosity and microbiome alpha diversity, but not epigenetic variation, are associated with the fluctuating asymmetry of traits related to performance (vision) and behaviour (aggression). Our study identifies that a proportion of the epigenetic diversity and microbiome differentiation is unrelated to genetic variation, and we find evidence for an associative relationship between microbiome and epigenetic diversity in these wild populations. This suggests that both mechanisms could potentially contribute to variation in species with low genetic diversity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ishrat Z Anka
- Department of Biosciences, Centre for Sustainable Aquatic Research, Swansea University, Swansea, Wales, SA2 8PP, UK
- Department of Aquaculture, Chattogram Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Chattogram, 4225, Bangladesh
| | - Tamsyn M Uren Webster
- Department of Biosciences, Centre for Sustainable Aquatic Research, Swansea University, Swansea, Wales, SA2 8PP, UK
| | - Waldir M Berbel-Filho
- Department of Biology, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK, 73019, USA
- Department of Biology, University of West Florida, Pensacola, FL, USA
| | - Matthew Hitchings
- Institute of Life Science, Swansea University, Swansea, Wales, SA2 8PP, UK
| | - Benjamin Overland
- Department of Biosciences, Centre for Sustainable Aquatic Research, Swansea University, Swansea, Wales, SA2 8PP, UK
| | - Sarah Weller
- Department of Biosciences, Centre for Sustainable Aquatic Research, Swansea University, Swansea, Wales, SA2 8PP, UK
| | - Carlos Garcia de Leaniz
- Department of Biosciences, Centre for Sustainable Aquatic Research, Swansea University, Swansea, Wales, SA2 8PP, UK
- Marine Research Centre (CIM-UVIGO), Universidade de Vigo, Vigo, Spain
| | - Sofia Consuegra
- Department of Biosciences, Centre for Sustainable Aquatic Research, Swansea University, Swansea, Wales, SA2 8PP, UK.
- Grupo de Biotecnología Acuática, Departamento de Biotecnología y Acuicultura, Instituto de Investigacións Mariñas, IIM-CSIC, Vigo, Spain.
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8
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Nguyen HM, Hong UVT, Ruocco M, Dattolo E, Marín-Guirao L, Pernice M, Procaccini G. Thermo-priming triggers species-specific physiological and transcriptome responses in Mediterranean seagrasses. PLANT PHYSIOLOGY AND BIOCHEMISTRY : PPB 2024; 210:108614. [PMID: 38626655 DOI: 10.1016/j.plaphy.2024.108614] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/10/2023] [Revised: 04/03/2024] [Accepted: 04/05/2024] [Indexed: 04/18/2024]
Abstract
Heat-priming improves plants' tolerance to a recurring heat stress event. The underlying molecular mechanisms of heat-priming are largely unknown in seagrasses. Here, ad hoc mesocosm experiments were conducted with two Mediterranean seagrass species, Posidonia oceanica and Cymodocea nodosa. Plants were first exposed to heat-priming, followed by a heat-triggering event. A comprehensive assessment of plant stress response across different levels of biological organization was performed at the end of the triggering event. Morphological and physiological results showed an improved response of heat-primed P. oceanica plants while in C. nodosa both heat- and non-primed plants enhanced their growth rates at the end of the triggering event. As resulting from whole transcriptome sequencing, molecular functions related to several cellular compartments and processes were involved in the response to warming of non-primed plants, while the response of heat-primed plants involved a limited group of processes. Our results suggest that seagrasses acquire a primed state during the priming event, that eventually gives plants the ability to induce a more energy-effective response when the thermal stress event recurs. Different species may differ in their ability to perform an improved heat stress response after priming. This study provides pioneer molecular insights into the emerging topic of seagrass stress priming and may benefit future studies in the field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hung Manh Nguyen
- Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Villa Comunale, 80121, Napoli, Italy
| | - Uyen V T Hong
- La Trobe University, AgriBio Building, Bundoora, 3086, VIC, Australia; Department of Plant Biotechnology & Biotransformation, University of Science, Vietnam National University, 700000, Ho Chi Minh City, Viet Nam
| | - Miriam Ruocco
- Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Villa Comunale, 80121, Napoli, Italy
| | - Emanuela Dattolo
- Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Villa Comunale, 80121, Napoli, Italy; NBFC, National Biodiversity Future Center, Piazza Marina 61, 90133, Palermo, Italy
| | - Lázaro Marín-Guirao
- Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Villa Comunale, 80121, Napoli, Italy; Oceanographic Center of Murcia, Seagrass Ecology Group, Spanish Institute of Oceanography (IEO-CSIC), C/Varadero, San Pedro del Pinatar, 30740, Murcia, Spain.
| | - Mathieu Pernice
- Faculty of Science, Climate Change Cluster (C3), University of Technology Sydney, Sydney, 2007, NSW, Australia
| | - Gabriele Procaccini
- Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Villa Comunale, 80121, Napoli, Italy; NBFC, National Biodiversity Future Center, Piazza Marina 61, 90133, Palermo, Italy
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9
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Shahmohamadloo RS, Fryxell JM, Rudman SM. Transgenerational epigenetic inheritance increases trait variation but is not adaptive. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.04.15.589575. [PMID: 38659883 PMCID: PMC11042258 DOI: 10.1101/2024.04.15.589575] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/26/2024]
Abstract
Understanding processes that can produce adaptive phenotypic shifts in response to rapid environmental change is critical to reducing biodiversity loss. The ubiquity of environmentally induced epigenetic marks has led to speculation that epigenetic inheritance could potentially enhance population persistence in response to environmental change. Yet, the magnitude and fitness consequences of epigenetic marks carried beyond maternal inheritance are largely unknown. Here, we tested how transgenerational epigenetic inheritance (TEI) shapes the phenotypic response of Daphnia clones to the environmental stressor Microcystis. We split individuals from each of eight genotypes into exposure and control treatments (F0 generation) and tracked the fitness of their descendants to the F3 generation. We found transgenerational epigenetic exposure to Microcystis led to reduced rates of survival and individual growth and no consistent effect on offspring production. Increase in trait variance in the F3 relative to F0 generations suggests potential for heritable bet hedging driven by TEI, which could impact population dynamics. Our findings are counter to the working hypothesis that TEI is a generally adaptive mechanism likely to prevent extinction for populations inhabiting rapidly changing environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- René S. Shahmohamadloo
- School of Biological Sciences, Washington State University, Vancouver, WA, United States
| | - John M. Fryxell
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada
| | - Seth M. Rudman
- School of Biological Sciences, Washington State University, Vancouver, WA, United States
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10
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Ray D, Sheldon EL, Zimmer C, Martin LB, Schrey AW. Screening H3 Histone Acetylation in a Wild Bird, the House Sparrow ( Passer Domesticus). Integr Org Biol 2024; 6:obae004. [PMID: 38516554 PMCID: PMC10956398 DOI: 10.1093/iob/obae004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2023] [Revised: 02/07/2024] [Accepted: 02/26/2024] [Indexed: 03/23/2024] Open
Abstract
Epigenetic mechanisms are increasingly understood to have major impacts across ecology. However, one molecular epigenetic mechanism, DNA methylation, currently dominates the literature. A second mechanism, histone modification, is likely important to ecologically relevant phenotypes and thus warrants investigation, especially because molecular interplay between methylation and histone acetylation can strongly affect gene expression. There are a limited number of histone acetylation studies on non-model organisms, yet those that exist show that it can impact gene expression and phenotypic plasticity. Wild birds provide an excellent system to investigate histone acetylation, as free-living individuals must rapidly adjust to environmental change. Here, we screen histone acetylation in the house sparrow (Passer domesticus); we studied this species because DNA methylation was important in the spread of this bird globally. This species has one of the broadest geographic distributions in the world, and part of this success is related to the way that it uses methylation to regulate its gene expression. Here, we verify that a commercially available assay that was developed for mammals can be used in house sparrows. We detected high variance in histone acetylation among individuals in both liver and spleen tissue. Further, house sparrows with higher epigenetic potential in the Toll Like Receptor-4 (TLR-4) promoter (i.e., CpG content) had higher histone acetylation in liver. Also, there was a negative correlation between histone acetylation in spleen and TLR-4 expression. In addition to validating a method for measuring histone acetylation in wild songbirds, this study also shows that histone acetylation is related to epigenetic potential and gene expression, adding a new study option for ecological epigenetics.
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Affiliation(s)
- D Ray
- Department of Biology, Georgia Southern University, Savannah, GA 31419, United States
| | - E L Sheldon
- USF Global Health and Infectious Disease Research Center and USF Genomics Center, College of Public Health University of South Florida, Tampa, FL 33612, United States
| | - C Zimmer
- Laboratoire d'Ethologie Expérimentale et Comparée, LEEC, Université Sorbonne Paris Nord, UR 4443, 93430 Villetaneuse, France
| | - L B Martin
- USF Global Health and Infectious Disease Research Center and USF Genomics Center, College of Public Health University of South Florida, Tampa, FL 33612, United States
| | - A W Schrey
- Department of Biology, Georgia Southern University, Savannah, GA 31419, United States
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Xue R, Guo R, Li Q, Lin T, Wu Z, Gao N, Wu F, Tong L, Zeng R, Song Y, Wang J. Rice responds to Spodoptera frugiperda infestation via epigenetic regulation of H3K9ac in the jasmonic acid signaling and phenylpropanoid biosynthesis pathways. PLANT CELL REPORTS 2024; 43:78. [PMID: 38393406 DOI: 10.1007/s00299-024-03160-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2023] [Accepted: 01/16/2024] [Indexed: 02/25/2024]
Abstract
KEY MESSAGE This study provided important insights into the complex epigenetic regulatory of H3K9ac-modified genes involved in the jasmonic acid signaling and phenylpropanoid biosynthesis pathways of rice in response to Spodoptera frugiperda infestation. Physiological and molecular mechanisms underlying plant responses to insect herbivores have been well studied, while epigenetic modifications such as histone acetylation and their potential regulation at the genomic level of hidden genes remain largely unknown. Histone 3 lysine 9 acetylation (H3K9ac) is an epigenetic marker widely distributed in plants that can activate gene transcription. In this study, we provided the genome-wide profiles of H3K9ac in rice (Oryza sativa) infested by fall armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda, FAW) using CUT&Tag-seq and RNA-seq. There were 3269 and 4609 up-regulated genes identified in plants infested by FAW larvae for 3 h and 12 h, respectively, which were mainly enriched in alpha-linolenic acid and phenylpropanoid pathways according to transcriptomic analysis. In addition, CUT&Tag-seq analysis revealed increased H3K9ac in FAW-infested plants, and there were 422 and 543 up-regulated genes enriched with H3K9ac observed at 3 h and 12 h after FAW feeding, respectively. Genes with increased H3K9ac were mainly enriched in the transcription start site (TSS), suggesting that H3K9ac is related to gene transcription. Integrative analysis of both RNA-seq and CUT&Tag-seq data showed that up-expressed genes with H3K9ac enrichment were mainly involved in the jasmonic acid (JA) and phenylpropanoid pathways. Particularly, two spermidine hydroxycinnamoyl transferase genes SHT1 and SHT2 involved in phenolamide biosynthesis were highly modified by H3K9ac in FAW-infested plants. Furthermore, the Ossht1 and Ossht2 transgenic lines exhibited decreased resistance against FAW larvae. Our findings suggest that rice responds to insect herbivory via H3K9ac epigenetic regulation in the JA signaling and phenolamide biosynthesis pathways.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rongrong Xue
- Key Laboratory of Ministry of Education for Genetics, Breeding and Multiple Utilization of Crops, College of Agriculture, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Jinshan, Fuzhou, 350002, China
| | - Ruiqing Guo
- Key Laboratory of Ministry of Education for Genetics, Breeding and Multiple Utilization of Crops, College of Agriculture, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Jinshan, Fuzhou, 350002, China
| | - Qing Li
- Key Laboratory of Ministry of Education for Genetics, Breeding and Multiple Utilization of Crops, College of Agriculture, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Jinshan, Fuzhou, 350002, China
| | - Tianhuang Lin
- Key Laboratory of Ministry of Education for Genetics, Breeding and Multiple Utilization of Crops, College of Agriculture, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Jinshan, Fuzhou, 350002, China
| | - Zicha Wu
- Key Laboratory of Ministry of Education for Genetics, Breeding and Multiple Utilization of Crops, College of Agriculture, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Jinshan, Fuzhou, 350002, China
| | - Ning Gao
- Key Laboratory of Ministry of Education for Genetics, Breeding and Multiple Utilization of Crops, College of Agriculture, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Jinshan, Fuzhou, 350002, China
| | - Fei Wu
- Key Laboratory of Ministry of Education for Genetics, Breeding and Multiple Utilization of Crops, College of Agriculture, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Jinshan, Fuzhou, 350002, China
| | - Lu Tong
- Key Laboratory of Ministry of Education for Genetics, Breeding and Multiple Utilization of Crops, College of Agriculture, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Jinshan, Fuzhou, 350002, China
| | - Rensen Zeng
- Key Laboratory of Ministry of Education for Genetics, Breeding and Multiple Utilization of Crops, College of Agriculture, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Jinshan, Fuzhou, 350002, China
- Key Laboratory of Biological Breeding for Fujian and Taiwan Crops, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, 350002, China
- State Key Laboratory of Ecological Pest Control for Fujian and Taiwan Crops, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, 350002, China
| | - Yuanyuan Song
- Key Laboratory of Ministry of Education for Genetics, Breeding and Multiple Utilization of Crops, College of Agriculture, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Jinshan, Fuzhou, 350002, China.
- Key Laboratory of Biological Breeding for Fujian and Taiwan Crops, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, 350002, China.
- State Key Laboratory of Ecological Pest Control for Fujian and Taiwan Crops, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, 350002, China.
| | - Jie Wang
- Key Laboratory of Ministry of Education for Genetics, Breeding and Multiple Utilization of Crops, College of Agriculture, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Jinshan, Fuzhou, 350002, China.
- Key Laboratory of Biological Breeding for Fujian and Taiwan Crops, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, 350002, China.
- State Key Laboratory of Ecological Pest Control for Fujian and Taiwan Crops, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, 350002, China.
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12
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Yévenes M, Gallardo-Escárate C, Gajardo G. Epigenetic variation mediated by lncRNAs accounts for adaptive genomic differentiation of the endemic blue mussel Mytiluschilensis. Heliyon 2024; 10:e23695. [PMID: 38205306 PMCID: PMC10776947 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e23695] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2023] [Accepted: 12/09/2023] [Indexed: 01/12/2024] Open
Abstract
Epigenetic variation affects gene expression without altering the underlying DNA sequence of genes controlling ecologically relevant phenotypes through different mechanisms, one of which is long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs). This study identified and evaluated the gene expression of lncRNAs in the gill and mantle tissues of Mytilus chilensis individuals from two ecologically different sites: Cochamó (41°S) and Yaldad (43°S), southern Chile, both impacted by climatic-related conditions and by mussel farming given their use as seedbeds. Sequences identified as lncRNAs exhibited tissue-specific differences, mapping to 3.54 % of the gill transcriptome and 1.96 % of the mantle transcriptome, representing an average of 2.76 % of the whole transcriptome. Using a high fold change value (≥|100|), we identified 43 and 47 differentially expressed lncRNAs (DE-lncRNAs) in the gill and mantle tissue of individuals sampled from Cochamó and 21 and 17 in the gill and mantle tissue of individuals sampled from Yaldad. Location-specific DE-lncRNAs were also detected in Cochamó (65) and Yaldad (94) samples. Via analysis of the differential expression of neighboring protein-coding genes, we identified enriched GO terms related to metabolic, genetic, and environmental information processing and immune system functions, reflecting how the impact of local ecological conditions may influence the M. chilensis (epi)genome expression. These DE-lncRNAs represent complementary biomarkers to DNA sequence variation for maintaining adaptive differences and phenotypic plasticity to cope with natural and human-driven perturbations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marco Yévenes
- Laboratorio de Genética, Acuicultura y Biodiversidad, Departamento de Ciencias Biológicas y Biodiversidad, Universidad de Los Lagos, Osorno, Chile
| | - Cristian Gallardo-Escárate
- Centro Interdisciplinario para la Investigación en Acuicultura, Universidad de Concepción, Concepción, Chile
| | - Gonzalo Gajardo
- Laboratorio de Genética, Acuicultura y Biodiversidad, Departamento de Ciencias Biológicas y Biodiversidad, Universidad de Los Lagos, Osorno, Chile
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13
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Tennenbaum SR, Bortner R, Lynch C, Santymire R, Crosier A, Santiestevan J, Marinari P, Pukazhenthi BS, Comizzoli P, Hawkins MTR, Maldonado JE, Koepfli K, vonHoldt BM, DeCandia AL. Epigenetic changes to gene pathways linked to male fertility in ex situ black-footed ferrets. Evol Appl 2024; 17:e13634. [PMID: 38283602 PMCID: PMC10818088 DOI: 10.1111/eva.13634] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2023] [Revised: 12/06/2023] [Accepted: 12/07/2023] [Indexed: 01/30/2024] Open
Abstract
Environmental variation can influence the reproductive success of species managed under human care and in the wild, yet the mechanisms underlying this phenomenon remain largely mysterious. Molecular mechanisms such as epigenetic modifiers are important in mediating the timing and progression of reproduction in humans and model organisms, but few studies have linked epigenetic variation to reproductive fitness in wildlife. Here, we investigated epigenetic variation in black-footed ferrets (Mustela nigripes), an endangered North American mammal reliant on ex situ management for survival and persistence in the wild. Despite similar levels of genetic diversity in human-managed and wild-born populations, individuals in ex situ facilities exhibit reproductive problems, such as poor sperm quality. Differences across these settings suggest that an environmentally driven decline in reproductive capacity may be occurring in this species. We examined the role of DNA methylation, one well-studied epigenetic modifier, in this emergent condition. We leveraged blood, testes, and semen samples from male black-footed ferrets bred in ex situ facilities and found tissue-type specificity in DNA methylation across the genome, although 1360 Gene Ontology terms associated with male average litter size shared functions across tissues. We then constructed gene networks of differentially methylated genomic sites associated with three different reproductive phenotypes to explore the putative biological impact of variation in DNA methylation. Sperm gene networks associated with average litter size and sperm count were functionally enriched for candidate genes involved in reproduction, development, and its regulation through transcriptional repression. We propose that DNA methylation plays an important role in regulating these reproductive phenotypes, thereby impacting the fertility of male ex situ individuals. Our results provide information into how DNA methylation may function in the alteration of reproductive pathways and phenotypes in artificial environments. These findings provide early insights to conservation hurdles faced in the protection of this rare species.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Robyn Bortner
- U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service National Black‐Footed Ferret Conservation CenterCarrColoradoUSA
| | | | - Rachel Santymire
- Biology DepartmentGeorgia State UniversityAtlantaGeorgiaUSA
- Center for Species SurvivalSmithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology InstituteFront RoyalVirginiaUSA
| | - Adrienne Crosier
- Center for Animal Care SciencesSmithsonian's National Zoo & Conservation Biology InstituteFront RoyalVirginiaUSA
| | - Jenny Santiestevan
- Center for Species SurvivalSmithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology InstituteFront RoyalVirginiaUSA
| | - Paul Marinari
- Center for Animal Care SciencesSmithsonian's National Zoo & Conservation Biology InstituteFront RoyalVirginiaUSA
| | - Budhan S. Pukazhenthi
- Center for Species SurvivalSmithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology InstituteFront RoyalVirginiaUSA
| | - Pierre Comizzoli
- Center for Species SurvivalSmithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology InstituteFront RoyalVirginiaUSA
| | - Melissa T. R. Hawkins
- Division of Mammals, Department of Vertebrate ZoologyNational Museum of Natural HistoryWashingtonDCUSA
| | - Jesús E. Maldonado
- Center for Conservation GenomicsSmithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology InstituteWashingtonDCUSA
| | - Klaus‐Peter Koepfli
- Center for Species SurvivalSmithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology InstituteFront RoyalVirginiaUSA
- Smithsonian‐Mason School of ConservationGeorge Mason UniversityFront RoyalVirginiaUSA
| | | | - Alexandra L. DeCandia
- Center for Conservation GenomicsSmithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology InstituteWashingtonDCUSA
- BiologyGeorgetown UniversityWashingtonDCUSA
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14
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Luo J, Miras K, Tomczak J, Eiben AE. Enhancing robot evolution through Lamarckian principles. Sci Rep 2023; 13:21109. [PMID: 38036589 PMCID: PMC10689460 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-48338-4] [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: 07/20/2023] [Accepted: 11/25/2023] [Indexed: 12/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Evolutionary robot systems offer two principal advantages: an advanced way of developing robots through evolutionary optimization and a special research platform to conduct what-if experiments regarding questions about evolution. Our study sits at the intersection of these. We investigate the question "What if the 18th-century biologist Lamarck was not completely wrong and individual traits learned during a lifetime could be passed on to offspring through inheritance?" We research this issue through simulations with an evolutionary robot framework where morphologies (bodies) and controllers (brains) of robots are evolvable and robots also can improve their controllers through learning during their lifetime. Within this framework, we compare a Lamarckian system, where learned bits of the brain are inheritable, with a Darwinian system, where they are not. Analyzing simulations based on these systems, we obtain new insights about Lamarckian evolution dynamics and the interaction between evolution and learning. Specifically, we show that Lamarckism amplifies the emergence of 'morphological intelligence', the ability of a given robot body to acquire a good brain by learning, and identify the source of this success: newborn robots have a higher fitness because their inherited brains match their bodies better than those in a Darwinian system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jie Luo
- Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
| | - Karine Miras
- Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Jakub Tomczak
- Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, The Netherlands
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15
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Somers DJ, Kushner DB, McKinnis AR, Mehmedovic D, Flame RS, Arnold TM. Epigenetic weapons in plant-herbivore interactions: Sulforaphane disrupts histone deacetylases, gene expression, and larval development in Spodoptera exigua while the specialist feeder Trichoplusia ni is largely resistant to these effects. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0293075. [PMID: 37856454 PMCID: PMC10586618 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0293075] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2023] [Accepted: 10/03/2023] [Indexed: 10/21/2023] Open
Abstract
Cruciferous plants produce sulforaphane (SFN), an inhibitor of nuclear histone deacetylases (HDACs). In humans and other mammals, the consumption of SFN alters enzyme activities, DNA-histone binding, and gene expression within minutes. However, the ability of SFN to act as an HDAC inhibitor in nature, disrupting the epigenetic machinery of insects feeding on these plants, has not been explored. Here, we demonstrate that SFN consumed in the diet inhibits the activity of HDAC enzymes and slows the development of the generalist grazer Spodoptera exigua, in a dose-dependent fashion. After consuming SFN for seven days, the activities of HDAC enzymes in S. exigua were reduced by 50%. Similarly, larval mass was reduced by 50% and pupation was delayed by 2-5 days, with no additional mortality. Similar results were obtained when SFN was applied topically to eggs. RNA-seq analyses confirm that SFN altered the expression of thousands of genes in S. exigua. Genes associated with energy conversion pathways were significantly downregulated while those encoding for ribosomal proteins were dramatically upregulated in response to the consumption of SFN. In contrast, the co-evolved specialist feeder Trichoplusia ni was not negatively impacted by SFN, whether it was consumed in their diet at natural concentrations or applied topically to eggs. The activities of HDAC enzymes were not inhibited and development was not disrupted. In fact, SFN exposure sometimes accelerated T. ni development. RNA-seq analyses revealed that the consumption of SFN alters gene expression in T. ni in similar ways, but to a lesser degree, compared to S. exigua. This apparent resistance of T. ni can be overwhelmed by unnaturally high levels of SFN or by exposure to more powerful pharmaceutical HDAC inhibitors. These results demonstrate that dietary SFN interferes with the epigenetic machinery of insects, supporting the hypothesis that plant-derived HDAC inhibitors serve as "epigenetic weapons" against herbivores.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dana J. Somers
- Department of Biology, Program in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Dickinson College, Carlisle, PA United States of America
| | - David B. Kushner
- Department of Biology, Program in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Dickinson College, Carlisle, PA United States of America
| | - Alexandria R. McKinnis
- Department of Biology, Program in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Dickinson College, Carlisle, PA United States of America
| | - Dzejlana Mehmedovic
- Department of Biology, Program in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Dickinson College, Carlisle, PA United States of America
| | - Rachel S. Flame
- Department of Biology, Program in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Dickinson College, Carlisle, PA United States of America
| | - Thomas M. Arnold
- Department of Biology, Program in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Dickinson College, Carlisle, PA United States of America
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16
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Laine VN, Sepers B, Lindner M, Gawehns F, Ruuskanen S, van Oers K. An ecologist's guide for studying DNA methylation variation in wild vertebrates. Mol Ecol Resour 2023; 23:1488-1508. [PMID: 35466564 DOI: 10.1111/1755-0998.13624] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2021] [Revised: 03/29/2022] [Accepted: 04/13/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
The field of molecular biology is advancing fast with new powerful technologies, sequencing methods and analysis software being developed constantly. Commonly used tools originally developed for research on humans and model species are now regularly used in ecological and evolutionary research. There is also a growing interest in the causes and consequences of epigenetic variation in natural populations. Studying ecological epigenetics is currently challenging, especially for vertebrate systems, because of the required technical expertise, complications with analyses and interpretation, and limitations in acquiring sufficiently high sample sizes. Importantly, neglecting the limitations of the experimental setup, technology and analyses may affect the reliability and reproducibility, and the extent to which unbiased conclusions can be drawn from these studies. Here, we provide a practical guide for researchers aiming to study DNA methylation variation in wild vertebrates. We review the technical aspects of epigenetic research, concentrating on DNA methylation using bisulfite sequencing, discuss the limitations and possible pitfalls, and how to overcome them through rigid and reproducible data analysis. This review provides a solid foundation for the proper design of epigenetic studies, a clear roadmap on the best practices for correct data analysis and a realistic view on the limitations for studying ecological epigenetics in vertebrates. This review will help researchers studying the ecological and evolutionary implications of epigenetic variation in wild populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Veronika N Laine
- Finnish Museum of Natural History, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Bernice Sepers
- Department of Animal Ecology, Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW), Wageningen, The Netherlands
- Behavioural Ecology Group, Wageningen University & Research (WUR), Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Melanie Lindner
- Department of Animal Ecology, Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW), Wageningen, The Netherlands
- Chronobiology Unit, Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES), University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Fleur Gawehns
- Department of Animal Ecology, Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW), Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Suvi Ruuskanen
- Department of Biological and Environmental Science, University of Jyväskylä, Jyväskylä, Finland
- Department of Biology, University of Turku, Finland
| | - Kees van Oers
- Department of Animal Ecology, Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW), Wageningen, The Netherlands
- Behavioural Ecology Group, Wageningen University & Research (WUR), Wageningen, The Netherlands
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17
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Kambona CM, Koua PA, Léon J, Ballvora A. Intergenerational and transgenerational effects of drought stress on winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.). PHYSIOLOGIA PLANTARUM 2023; 175:e13951. [PMID: 37310785 DOI: 10.1111/ppl.13951] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2023] [Revised: 05/29/2023] [Accepted: 06/07/2023] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
The environments where the progenitors are grown have the potential to affect the expression of traits in their offspring. Currently, there are various hypotheses regarding the evolutionary and ecological importance of stress memory effects. There is uncertainty regarding its occurrence, persistence, predictability, and adaptive value. In this study, 15 winter wheat cultivars were grown under drought and well-watered (control) treatments for two seasons to produce seeds with all possible combinations of drought exposure histories. A comprehensive analysis to estimate transgenerational (grandparental effects), intergenerational (parental effects), and their combined memory effects on offspring traits under both control and drought moisture treatments, was performed. There were significant memory effects in most of the evaluated traits ranging from +787% to -39.0% changes in both seed quality and plant traits. The expression of stress memory was highly dependent on the generation and number of exposures, traits, and seasons. Under drought treatment, the combination of grandparental and parental stress memories was additive in all traits, but their strengths were variable when considered separately. Stress memory enhanced the performance of offspring under similar stressful conditions: increased plant height, above-ground biomass, number of grains per plant, grain weight per plant and water potential. This study offers valuable new insights into the occurrence of drought stress memory, the complexities of the effects, possible physiological and metabolic alterations explaining the detected differences, and impacts toward a clearer understanding of their generation and context-dependency.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carolyn Mukiri Kambona
- Department of Plant Breeding, Institute of Crop Science and Resource Conservation (INRES), RheinischeFriedrich-Wilhelms-University, Bonn, Germany
| | - Patrice Ahossi Koua
- Department of Plant Breeding, Institute of Crop Science and Resource Conservation (INRES), RheinischeFriedrich-Wilhelms-University, Bonn, Germany
- Deutsche Saatveredelung AG, Salzkotten-Thüle, Germany
| | - Jens Léon
- Department of Plant Breeding, Institute of Crop Science and Resource Conservation (INRES), RheinischeFriedrich-Wilhelms-University, Bonn, Germany
- Field Lab Campus Klein-Altendorf, Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-University, Bonn, Germany
| | - Agim Ballvora
- Department of Plant Breeding, Institute of Crop Science and Resource Conservation (INRES), RheinischeFriedrich-Wilhelms-University, Bonn, Germany
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18
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Li YS, Liao PC, Chang CT, Hwang SY. The Contribution of Epigenetics to Evolutionary Adaptation in Zingiber kawagoii Hayata (Zingiberaceae) Endemic to Taiwan. PLANTS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2023; 12:1558. [PMID: 37050184 PMCID: PMC10096833 DOI: 10.3390/plants12071558] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/26/2023] [Revised: 04/03/2023] [Accepted: 04/03/2023] [Indexed: 06/19/2023]
Abstract
We epigenotyped 211 individuals from 17 Zingiber kawagoii populations using methylation-sensitive amplification polymorphism (MSAP) and investigated the associations of methylated (mMSAP) and unmethylated (uMSAP) loci with 16 environmental variables. Data regarding genetic variation based on amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) were obtained from an earlier study. We found a significant positive correlation between genetic and epigenetic variation. Significantly higher mean mMSAP and uMSAP uHE (unbiased expected heterozygosity: 0.223 and 0.131, respectively, p < 0.001) per locus than that estimated based on AFLP (uHE = 0.104) were found. Genome scans detected 10 mMSAP and 9 uMSAP FST outliers associated with various environmental variables. A significant linear fit for 11 and 12 environmental variables with outlier mMSAP and uMSAP ordination, respectively, generated using full model redundancy analysis (RDA) was found. When conditioned on geography, partial RDA revealed that five and six environmental variables, respectively, were the most important variables influencing outlier mMSAP and uMSAP variation. We found higher genetic (average FST = 0.298) than epigenetic (mMSAP and uMSAP average FST = 0.044 and 0.106, respectively) differentiation and higher genetic isolation-by-distance (IBD) than epigenetic IBD. Strong epigenetic isolation-by-environment (IBE) was found, particularly based on the outlier data, controlling either for geography (mMSAP and uMSAP βE = 0.128 and 0.132, respectively, p = 0.001) or for genetic structure (mMSAP and uMSAP βE = 0.105 and 0.136, respectively, p = 0.001). Our results suggest that epigenetic variants can be substrates for natural selection linked to environmental variables and complement genetic changes in the adaptive evolution of Z. kawagoii populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yi-Shao Li
- School of Life Science, National Taiwan Normal University, 88 Tingchow Road, Section 4, Taipei 11677, Taiwan
| | - Pei-Chun Liao
- School of Life Science, National Taiwan Normal University, 88 Tingchow Road, Section 4, Taipei 11677, Taiwan
| | - Chung-Te Chang
- Department of Life Science, Tunghai University, 1727 Taiwan Boulevard, Section 4, Taichung 40704, Taiwan;
| | - Shih-Ying Hwang
- School of Life Science, National Taiwan Normal University, 88 Tingchow Road, Section 4, Taipei 11677, Taiwan
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19
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Møller C, March-Salas M, Kuppler J, De Frenne P, Scheepens JF. Intra-individual variation in Galium odoratum is affected by experimental drought and shading. ANNALS OF BOTANY 2023; 131:411-422. [PMID: 36546703 PMCID: PMC10072115 DOI: 10.1093/aob/mcac148] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/28/2022] [Accepted: 12/08/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND AIMS Climate-change induced warmer spring temperatures advance tree leaf-out and result in earlier shading of the forest floor. Climate change also leads to more frequent droughts. Forest understorey herbs may respond to these environmental changes by varying traits at different hierarchical levels of organization. While trait mean variation at the inter-individual level in response to environmental changes is well-studied, little is known about how variation at the intra-individual level responds. METHODS We sampled genets of the forest understorey herb Galium odoratum from 21 populations in three regions in Germany, varying in microclimatic conditions. The genets were transplanted into a common garden, where we applied shading and drought treatments. We measured plant height and leaf length and width, and calculated the coefficient of variation (CV) at different hierarchical levels: intra-population, intra-genet, intra-ramet and intra-shoot. KEY RESULTS Variance partitioning showed that intra-shoot CV represented most of the total variation, followed by intra-ramet CV. We found significant variation in CV of plant height and leaf width among populations of origin, indicating that CV is at least partly genetically based. The soil temperature at populations' origins correlated negatively with CV in plant height, suggesting adaptation to local conditions. Furthermore, we observed that early shade led to increased intra-ramet CV in leaf length, while drought reduced intra-shoot CV in leaf width. Finally, intra-shoot leaf width mean and CV were independent under control conditions but correlated under drought. CONCLUSIONS Our experimental results reveal correlations of intra-individual variation with soil temperature, indicating that intra-individual variation can evolve and may be adaptive. Intra-individual variation responded plastically to drought and shading, suggesting functional changes to improve light capture and reduce evapotranspiration. In conclusion, intra-individual variation makes up the majority of total trait variation in this species and can play a key role in plant adaptation to climatic change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Charlotte Møller
- Plant Evolutionary Ecology, Faculty of Biological Sciences, Goethe University Frankfurt, Max-von-Laue-Str. 13, 60438 Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Martí March-Salas
- Plant Evolutionary Ecology, Faculty of Biological Sciences, Goethe University Frankfurt, Max-von-Laue-Str. 13, 60438 Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Jonas Kuppler
- Institute of Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation Genomics, Ulm University, Albert-Einstein-Allee 11, 89081 Ulm, Germany
| | - Pieter De Frenne
- Forest & Nature Lab, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Geraardsbergsesteenweg 267, 9090 Gontrode, Belgium
| | - J F Scheepens
- Plant Evolutionary Ecology, Faculty of Biological Sciences, Goethe University Frankfurt, Max-von-Laue-Str. 13, 60438 Frankfurt am Main, Germany
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Fu QY, Yu CL, Dong R, Shi J, Luo FL, Gao JQ, Li HL, Dong BC, Yu FH. Transgenerational Herbivory Effects on Performance of Clonal Offspring of the Invasive Plant Alternanthera philoxeroides. PLANTS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2023; 12:1180. [PMID: 36904040 PMCID: PMC10005396 DOI: 10.3390/plants12051180] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/04/2023] [Revised: 02/20/2023] [Accepted: 03/02/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
Interactions between alien plants and local enemies in introduced ranges may determine plant invasion success. However, little is known about whether herbivory-induced responses are transmitted across vegetative generations of plants and whether epigenetic changes are involved during this process. In a greenhouse experiment, we examined the effects of herbivory by the generalist herbivore Spodoptera litura on the growth, physiology, biomass allocation and DNA methylation level of the invasive plant Alternanthera philoxeroides in the first- (G1), second- (G2) and third-generation (G3). We also tested the effects of root fragments with different branching orders (i.e., the primary- or secondary-root fragments of taproots) of G1 on offspring performance. Our results showed that G1 herbivory promoted the growth of the plants in G2 that sprouted from the secondary-root fragments of G1 but had a neutral or negative effect on the growth of the plants in G2 from the primary-root fragments. The growth of plants in G3 was significantly reduced by G3 herbivory but not affected by G1 herbivory. Plants in G1 exhibited a higher level of DNA methylation when they were damaged by herbivores than when they were not, while neither plants in G2 nor G3 showed herbivory-induced changes in DNA methylation. Overall, the herbivory-induced growth response within one vegetative generation may represent the rapid acclimatization of A. philoxeroides to the unpredictable generalist herbivores in the introduced ranges. Herbivory-induced trans-generational effects may be transient for clonal offspring of A. philoxeroides, which can be influenced by the branching order of taproots, but be less characterized by DNA methylation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qiu-Yue Fu
- School of Ecology and Nature Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing 100083, China
- Institute of Wetland Ecology & Clone Ecology/Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation, Taizhou University, Taizhou 318000, China
| | - Cheng-Ling Yu
- School of Ecology and Nature Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing 100083, China
| | - Ran Dong
- School of Ecology and Nature Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing 100083, China
| | - Juan Shi
- School of Forestry, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing 100083, China
| | - Fang-Li Luo
- School of Ecology and Nature Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing 100083, China
- The Key Laboratory of Ecological Protection in the Yellow River Basin of National Forestry and Grassland Administration, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing 100083, China
| | - Jun-Qin Gao
- School of Ecology and Nature Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing 100083, China
- The Key Laboratory of Ecological Protection in the Yellow River Basin of National Forestry and Grassland Administration, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing 100083, China
| | - Hong-Li Li
- School of Ecology and Nature Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing 100083, China
- The Key Laboratory of Ecological Protection in the Yellow River Basin of National Forestry and Grassland Administration, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing 100083, China
| | - Bi-Cheng Dong
- School of Ecology and Nature Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing 100083, China
- The Key Laboratory of Ecological Protection in the Yellow River Basin of National Forestry and Grassland Administration, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing 100083, China
| | - Fei-Hai Yu
- Institute of Wetland Ecology & Clone Ecology/Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation, Taizhou University, Taizhou 318000, China
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21
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von Holdt BM, Kartzinel RY, van Oers K, Verhoeven KJF, Ouyang JQ. Changes in the rearing environment cause reorganization of molecular networks associated with DNA methylation. J Anim Ecol 2023; 92:648-664. [PMID: 36567635 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.13878] [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: 06/17/2022] [Accepted: 12/22/2022] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
Disentangling the interaction between the genetic basis and environmental context underlying phenotypic variation is critical for understanding organismal evolution. Environmental change, such as increased rates of urbanization, can induce shifts in phenotypic plasticity with some individuals adapting to city life while others are displaced. A key trait that can facilitate adaptation is the degree at which animals respond to stressors. This stress response, which includes elevation of baseline circulating concentrations of glucocorticoids, has a heritable component and exhibits intra- and inter-individual variation. However, the mechanisms behind this variability and whether they might be responsible for adaptation to different environments are not known. Variation in DNA methylation can be a potential mechanism that mediates environmental effects on the stress response, as early-life stressors increase glucocorticoid concentrations and change adult phenotype. We used an inter- and intra-environmental cross-foster experiment to analyse the contribution of DNA methylation to early-life phenotypic variation. We found that at hatching, urban house wren (Troglodytes aedon) offspring had higher methylation frequencies compared with their rural counterparts. We also observed age-related patterns in offspring methylation, indicating the developmental effects of the rearing environment on methylation. At fledgling, differential methylation analyses showed that cellular respiration genes were differentially methylated in broods of different origins and behavioural and metabolism genes were differentially methylated in broods of different rearing environments. Lastly, hyper-methylation of a single gene (CNTNAP2) is associated with decreased glucocorticoid levels and the rearing environment. These differential methylation patterns linked to a specific physiological phenotype suggest that DNA methylation may be a mechanism by which individuals adjust to novel environments during their lifespan. Characterizing genetic and environmental influences on methylation is critical for understanding the role of epigenetic mechanisms in evolutionary adaptation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bridgett M von Holdt
- Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey, USA
| | - Rebecca Y Kartzinel
- Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island, USA
| | - Kees van Oers
- Department of Animal Ecology, Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW), Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Koen J F Verhoeven
- Department of Terrestrial Ecology, Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW), Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Jenny Q Ouyang
- Department of Biology, University of Nevada, Reno, Nevada, USA
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22
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Bock DG, Liu J, Novikova P, Rieseberg LH. Long-read sequencing in ecology and evolution: Understanding how complex genetic and epigenetic variants shape biodiversity. Mol Ecol 2023; 32:1229-1235. [PMID: 36855925 DOI: 10.1111/mec.16884] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/15/2022] [Accepted: 02/13/2023] [Indexed: 03/02/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Dan G Bock
- Department of Botany, Biodiversity Research Centre, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Jianquan Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Grassland and Agro-ecosystems, Institute of Innovation Ecology, School of Life Science and the Supercomputing Center, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China.,Key Laboratory of Bio-Resource and Eco-Environment of Ministry of Education, College of Life Sciences, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
| | - Polina Novikova
- Department of Chromosome Biology, Max Planck Institute for Plant Breeding Research, Cologne, Germany
| | - Loren H Rieseberg
- Department of Botany, Biodiversity Research Centre, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
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23
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Hörandl E. Geographical Parthenogenesis in Alpine and Arctic Plants. PLANTS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2023; 12:844. [PMID: 36840192 PMCID: PMC9959270 DOI: 10.3390/plants12040844] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/19/2023] [Revised: 02/08/2023] [Accepted: 02/09/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
The term "Geographical parthenogenesis" describes the phenomenon that asexual organisms usually occupy larger and more northern distribution areas than their sexual relatives, and tend to colonize previously glaciated areas. Several case studies on alpine and arctic plants confirm the geographical pattern, but the causal factors behind the phenomenon are still unclear. Research of the last decade in several plant families has shed light on the question and evaluated some of the classical evolutionary theories. Results confirmed, in general, that the advantages of uniparental reproduction enable apomictic plants to re-colonize faster in larger and more northern distribution areas. Associated factors like polyploidy seem to contribute mainly to the spatial separation of sexual and asexual cytotypes. Ecological studies suggest a better tolerance of apomicts to colder climates and temperate extremes, whereby epigenetic flexibility and phenotypic plasticity play an important role in occupying ecological niches under harsh conditions. Genotypic diversity appears to be of lesser importance for the distributional success of asexual plants. Classical evolutionary theories like a reduced pressure of biotic interactions in colder climates and hence an advantage to asexuals (Red Queen hypothesis) did not gain support from studies on plants. However, it is also still enigmatic why sexual outcrossing remains the predominant mode of reproduction also in alpine floras. Constraints for the origin of apomixis might play a role. Interestingly, some studies suggest an association of sexuality with abiotic stresses. Light stress in high elevations might explain why most alpine plants retain sexual reproduction despite other environmental factors that would favor apomixis. Directions for future research will be given.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elvira Hörandl
- Department of Systematics, Biodiversity and Evolution of Plants (with Herbarium), University of Goettingen, 37073 Göttingen, Germany
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24
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Scheschonk L, Bischof K, Kopp MEL, Jueterbock A. Differences by origin in methylome suggest eco-phenotypes in the kelp Saccharina latissima. Evol Appl 2023; 16:262-278. [PMID: 36793679 PMCID: PMC9923482 DOI: 10.1111/eva.13382] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/22/2021] [Revised: 03/25/2022] [Accepted: 03/31/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Most kelp species are of high ecological and economic importance worldwide, but are highly susceptible to rising ocean temperatures due to their sessile lifestyle. Due to interference with reproduction, development and growth, natural kelp forests have vanished in multiple regions after extreme summer heat waves. Furthermore, increasing temperatures are likely to decrease biomass production and, thus, reduce production security of farmed kelp. Epigenetic variation, and cytosine methylation as a heritable epigenetic trait, is a rapid means of acclimation and adaptation to environmental conditions, including temperature. While the first methylome of brown macroalgae has been recently described in the kelp Saccharina japonica, its functional relevance and contribution to environmental acclimation is currently unknown. The main objective of our study was to identify the importance of the methylome in the congener kelp species Saccharina latissima for temperature acclimation. Our study is the first to compare DNA methylation in kelp between wild populations of different latitudinal origin, and the first to investigate the effect of cultivation and rearing temperature on genome-wide cytosine methylation. Origin appears to determine many traits in kelp, but it is unknown to what extent the effects of thermal acclimation may be overruled by lab-related acclimation. Our results suggest that seaweed hatchery conditions have strong effects on the methylome and, thus, putatively on the epigenetically controlled characteristics of young kelp sporophytes. However, culture origin could best explain epigenetic differences in our samples suggesting that epigenetic mechanisms contribute to local adaptation of eco-phenotypes. Our study is a first step to understand whether DNA methylation marks (via their effect on gene regulation) may be used as biological regulators to enhance production security and kelp restoration success under rising temperatures, and highlights the importance to match hatchery conditions to origin.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Kai Bischof
- Marine Botany & MARUMUniversity of BremenBremenGermany
| | | | - Alexander Jueterbock
- Algal and Microbial Biotechnology DivisionFaculty of Biosciences and AquacultureNord UniversityBodøNorway
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25
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Zhao Y, Hu J, Wu J, Li Z. ChIP-seq profiling of H3K4me3 and H3K27me3 in an invasive insect, Bactrocera dorsalis. Front Genet 2023; 14:1108104. [PMID: 36911387 PMCID: PMC9996634 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2023.1108104] [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: 11/25/2022] [Accepted: 02/10/2023] [Indexed: 02/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Introduction: While it has been suggested that histone modifications can facilitate animal responses to rapidly changing environments, few studies have profiled whole-genome histone modification patterns in invasive species, leaving the regulatory landscape of histone modifications in invasive species unclear. Methods: Here, we screen genome-wide patterns of two important histone modifications, trimethylated Histone H3 Lysine 4 (H3K4me3) and trimethylated Histone H3 Lysine 27 (H3K27me3), in adult thorax muscles of a notorious invasive pest, the Oriental fruit fly Bactrocera dorsalis (Hendel) (Diptera: Tephritidae), using Chromatin Immunoprecipitation with high-throughput sequencing (ChIP-seq). Results: We identified promoters featured by the occupancy of H3K4me3, H3K27me3 or bivalent histone modifications that were respectively annotated with unique genes key to muscle development and structure maintenance. In addition, we found H3K27me3 occupied the entire body of genes, where the average enrichment was almost constant. Transcriptomic analysis indicated that H3K4me3 is associated with active gene transcription, and H3K27me3 is mostly associated with transcriptional repression. Importantly, we identified genes and putative motifs modified by distinct histone modification patterns that may possibly regulate flight activity. Discussion: These findings provide the first evidence of histone modification signature in B. dorsalis, and will be useful for future studies of epigenetic signature in other invasive insect species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yan Zhao
- Key Laboratory of Surveillance and Management for Plant Quarantine Pests, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, College of Plant Protection, China Agricultural University, Beijing, China
| | - Juntao Hu
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Biodiversity Science and Ecological Engineering, Institute of Biodiversity Science, Center of Evolutionary Biology, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Jiajiao Wu
- Technology Center of Guangzhou Customs, Guangzhou, China
| | - Zhihong Li
- Key Laboratory of Surveillance and Management for Plant Quarantine Pests, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, College of Plant Protection, China Agricultural University, Beijing, China
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26
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Davies SW, Gamache MH, Howe-Kerr LI, Kriefall NG, Baker AC, Banaszak AT, Bay LK, Bellantuono AJ, Bhattacharya D, Chan CX, Claar DC, Coffroth MA, Cunning R, Davy SK, del Campo J, Díaz-Almeyda EM, Frommlet JC, Fuess LE, González-Pech RA, Goulet TL, Hoadley KD, Howells EJ, Hume BCC, Kemp DW, Kenkel CD, Kitchen SA, LaJeunesse TC, Lin S, McIlroy SE, McMinds R, Nitschke MR, Oakley CA, Peixoto RS, Prada C, Putnam HM, Quigley K, Reich HG, Reimer JD, Rodriguez-Lanetty M, Rosales SM, Saad OS, Sampayo EM, Santos SR, Shoguchi E, Smith EG, Stat M, Stephens TG, Strader ME, Suggett DJ, Swain TD, Tran C, Traylor-Knowles N, Voolstra CR, Warner ME, Weis VM, Wright RM, Xiang T, Yamashita H, Ziegler M, Correa AMS, Parkinson JE. Building consensus around the assessment and interpretation of Symbiodiniaceae diversity. PeerJ 2023; 11:e15023. [PMID: 37151292 PMCID: PMC10162043 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.15023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/09/2022] [Accepted: 02/17/2023] [Indexed: 05/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Within microeukaryotes, genetic variation and functional variation sometimes accumulate more quickly than morphological differences. To understand the evolutionary history and ecology of such lineages, it is key to examine diversity at multiple levels of organization. In the dinoflagellate family Symbiodiniaceae, which can form endosymbioses with cnidarians (e.g., corals, octocorals, sea anemones, jellyfish), other marine invertebrates (e.g., sponges, molluscs, flatworms), and protists (e.g., foraminifera), molecular data have been used extensively over the past three decades to describe phenotypes and to make evolutionary and ecological inferences. Despite advances in Symbiodiniaceae genomics, a lack of consensus among researchers with respect to interpreting genetic data has slowed progress in the field and acted as a barrier to reconciling observations. Here, we identify key challenges regarding the assessment and interpretation of Symbiodiniaceae genetic diversity across three levels: species, populations, and communities. We summarize areas of agreement and highlight techniques and approaches that are broadly accepted. In areas where debate remains, we identify unresolved issues and discuss technologies and approaches that can help to fill knowledge gaps related to genetic and phenotypic diversity. We also discuss ways to stimulate progress, in particular by fostering a more inclusive and collaborative research community. We hope that this perspective will inspire and accelerate coral reef science by serving as a resource to those designing experiments, publishing research, and applying for funding related to Symbiodiniaceae and their symbiotic partnerships.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah W. Davies
- Department of Biology, Boston University, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Matthew H. Gamache
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, United States
| | | | | | - Andrew C. Baker
- Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric, and Earth Science, University of Miami, Miami, FL, United States
| | - Anastazia T. Banaszak
- Unidad Académica de Sistemas Arrecifales, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Puerto Morelos, Mexico
| | - Line Kolind Bay
- Australian Institute of Marine Science, Townsville, Australia
| | - Anthony J. Bellantuono
- Department of Biological Sciences, Florida International University, Miami, FL, United States
| | - Debashish Bhattacharya
- Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ, United States
| | - Cheong Xin Chan
- Australian Centre for Ecogenomics, School of Chemistry and Molecular Biosciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, Australia
| | - Danielle C. Claar
- Nearshore Habitat Program, Washington State Department of Natural Resources, Olympia, WA, USA
| | | | - Ross Cunning
- Daniel P. Haerther Center for Conservation and Research, John G. Shedd Aquarium, Chicago, IL, United States
| | - Simon K. Davy
- School of Biological Sciences, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington, New Zealand
| | - Javier del Campo
- Institut de Biologia Evolutiva (CSIC - Universitat Pompeu Fabra), Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
| | | | - Jörg C. Frommlet
- Centre for Environmental and Marine Studies, Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, Campus Universitário de Santiago, Aveiro, Portugal
| | - Lauren E. Fuess
- Department of Biology, Texas State University, San Marcos, TX, United States
| | - Raúl A. González-Pech
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, United States
- Department of Biology, Pennsylvania State University, State College, PA, United States
| | - Tamar L. Goulet
- Department of Biology, University of Mississippi, University, MS, United States
| | - Kenneth D. Hoadley
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alabama—Tuscaloosa, Tuscaloosa, AL, United States
| | - Emily J. Howells
- National Marine Science Centre, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Southern Cross University, Coffs Harbour, NSW, Australia
| | | | - Dustin W. Kemp
- Department of Biology, University of Alabama—Birmingham, Birmingham, Al, United States
| | - Carly D. Kenkel
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, United States
| | - Sheila A. Kitchen
- Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, United States
| | - Todd C. LaJeunesse
- Department of Biology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, United States
| | - Senjie Lin
- Department of Marine Sciences, University of Connecticut, Mansfield, CT, United States
| | - Shelby E. McIlroy
- Swire Institute of Marine Science, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Hong Kong, Pok Fu Lam, Hong Kong
| | - Ryan McMinds
- Center for Global Health and Infectious Disease Research, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, United States
| | | | - Clinton A. Oakley
- School of Biological Sciences, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington, New Zealand
| | - Raquel S. Peixoto
- Red Sea Research Center (RSRC), Division of Biological and Environmental Science and Engineering (BESE), King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Thuwal, Saudi Arabia
| | - Carlos Prada
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Rhode Island, Kingston, RI, United States
| | - Hollie M. Putnam
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Rhode Island, Kingston, RI, United States
| | | | - Hannah G. Reich
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Rhode Island, Kingston, RI, United States
| | - James Davis Reimer
- Department of Biology, Chemistry and Marine Sciences, Faculty of Science, University of the Ryukyus, Nishihara, Okinawa, Japan
| | | | - Stephanie M. Rosales
- The Cooperative Institute For Marine and Atmospheric Studies, Miami, FL, United States
| | - Osama S. Saad
- Department of Biological Oceanography, Red Sea University, Port-Sudan, Sudan
| | - Eugenia M. Sampayo
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Queensland, St. Lucia, QLD, Australia
| | - Scott R. Santos
- Department of Biological Sciences, University at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY, United States
| | - Eiichi Shoguchi
- Marine Genomics Unit, Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, Okinawa, Japan
| | - Edward G. Smith
- School of Life Sciences, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
| | - Michael Stat
- School of Environmental and Life Sciences, University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW, Australia
| | - Timothy G. Stephens
- Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ, United States
| | - Marie E. Strader
- Department of Biology, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, United States
| | - David J. Suggett
- Red Sea Research Center (RSRC), Division of Biological and Environmental Science and Engineering (BESE), King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Thuwal, Saudi Arabia
- Climate Change Cluster, University of Technology Sydney, Ultimo, NSW, Australia
| | - Timothy D. Swain
- Department of Marine and Environmental Science, Nova Southeastern University, Dania Beach, FL, United States
| | - Cawa Tran
- Department of Biology, University of San Diego, San Diego, CA, United States
| | - Nikki Traylor-Knowles
- Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric, and Earth Science, University of Miami, Miami, FL, United States
| | | | - Mark E. Warner
- School of Marine Science and Policy, University of Delaware, Lewes, DE, United States
| | - Virginia M. Weis
- Department of Integrative Biology, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, United States
| | - Rachel M. Wright
- Department of Biological Sciences, Southern Methodist University, Dallas, TX, United States
| | - Tingting Xiang
- School of Life Sciences, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
| | - Hiroshi Yamashita
- Fisheries Technology Institute, Japan Fisheries Research and Education Agency, Ishigaki, Okinawa, Japan
| | - Maren Ziegler
- Department of Animal Ecology & Systematics, Justus Liebig University Giessen (Germany), Giessen, Germany
| | | | - John Everett Parkinson
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, United States
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27
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Yao Z, Yuan L, Liu K, Wang T, Liu B, Zhao Y, Gan S, Chen L. Warming-induced changes of broccoli head to cauliflower-like curd in Brassica oleracea are regulated by DNA methylation as revealed by methylome and transcriptome co-profiling. MOLECULAR HORTICULTURE 2022; 2:26. [PMID: 37789398 PMCID: PMC10515005 DOI: 10.1186/s43897-022-00047-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2022] [Accepted: 11/18/2022] [Indexed: 10/05/2023]
Abstract
Increasingly warming temperature impacts on all aspects of growth and development in plants. Flower development is a complex process that is very sensitive to ambient temperature, and warming temperatures often lead to abnormal flower development and remarkably reduce the quality and yield of inflorescent vegetables and many other crops, which can be exemplified by Brassica oleracea cv. Green Harmony F1, a broccoli cultivar, whose floral development is ceased at inflorescence meristem (at 28 °C) or floral primordium stage (at 22 °C), forming a cauliflower-like curd (28 °C) or intermediate curd (22 °C) instead of normal broccoli head at 16 °C. However, the underlying molecular regulatory mechanisms are not well understood. Here we report that warming temperature (28 °C or 22 °C) induced hypermethylation of the genome, especially the promoter regions of such sets of genes as ribosome biogenesis-related and others, leading to the suppression of the apex-highly-expressed distinctive genes, subsequently resulting in the abnormal floral development, as revealed by methylome and transcriptome co-profiling. The regulation of warming-induced abnormal floral development in broccoli was further verified by the fact that the DNA methylation inhibitor 5-azacytidine (5-azaC) released the expression of genes from the warming temperature-induced suppression, and restored the broccoli development to normalcy at warming temperature. The research provided new approaches to breeding broccoli and other crops for growing in wider or warmer temperature zones. Graphical Abstract.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zilei Yao
- Department of Horticulture, College of Agriculture and Biotechnology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China
| | - Lu Yuan
- Department of Horticulture, College of Agriculture and Biotechnology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China
| | - Ke Liu
- Department of Horticulture, College of Agriculture and Biotechnology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China
| | - Tingjin Wang
- Department of Horticulture, College of Agriculture and Biotechnology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China
| | - Bin Liu
- Department of Horticulture, College of Agriculture and Biotechnology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China
| | - Yan Zhao
- Plant Biology Section, School of Integrative Plant Science, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 14853, USA
- Present address: College of Agronomy and Biotechnology, Yunnan Agricultural University, Kunming, 650201, China
| | - Susheng Gan
- Plant Biology Section, School of Integrative Plant Science, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 14853, USA.
| | - Liping Chen
- Department of Horticulture, College of Agriculture and Biotechnology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China.
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28
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Patlar B. On the Role of Seminal Fluid Protein and Nucleic Acid Content in Paternal Epigenetic Inheritance. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:ijms232314533. [PMID: 36498858 PMCID: PMC9739459 DOI: 10.3390/ijms232314533] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/16/2022] [Revised: 11/10/2022] [Accepted: 11/17/2022] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
The evidence supports the occurrence of environmentally-induced paternal epigenetic inheritance that shapes the offspring phenotype in the absence of direct or indirect paternal care and clearly demonstrates that sperm epigenetics is one of the major actors mediating these paternal effects. However, in most animals, while sperm makes up only a small portion of the seminal fluid, males also have a complex mixture of proteins, peptides, different types of small noncoding RNAs, and cell-free DNA fragments in their ejaculate. These seminal fluid contents (Sfcs) are in close contact with the reproductive cells, tissues, organs, and other molecules of both males and females during reproduction. Moreover, their production and use are adjusted in response to environmental conditions, making them potential markers of environmentally- and developmentally-induced paternal effects on the next generation(s). Although there is some intriguing evidence for Sfc-mediated paternal effects, the underlying molecular mechanisms remain poorly defined. In this review, the current evidence regarding the links between seminal fluid and environmental paternal effects and the potential pathways and mechanisms that seminal fluid may follow in mediating paternal epigenetic inheritance are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bahar Patlar
- Animal Ecology, Department of Zoology, Martin-Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, 06099 Halle (Saale), Germany
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29
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Kosová V, Latzel V, Hadincová V, Münzbergová Z. Effect of DNA methylation, modified by 5-azaC, on ecophysiological responses of a clonal plant to changing climate. Sci Rep 2022; 12:17262. [PMID: 36241768 PMCID: PMC9568541 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-22125-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2022] [Accepted: 10/10/2022] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Epigenetic regulation of gene expression is expected to be an important mechanism behind phenotypic plasticity. Whether epigenetic regulation affects species ecophysiological adaptations to changing climate remains largely unexplored. We compared ecophysiological traits between individuals treated with 5-azaC, assumed to lead to DNA demethylation, with control individuals of a clonal grass originating from and grown under different climates, simulating different directions and magnitudes of climate change. We linked the ecophysiological data to proxies of fitness. Main effects of plant origin and cultivating conditions predicted variation in plant traits, but 5-azaC did not. Effects of 5-azaC interacted with conditions of cultivation and plant origin. The direction of the 5-azaC effects suggests that DNA methylation does not reflect species long-term adaptations to climate of origin and species likely epigenetically adjusted to the conditions experienced during experiment set-up. Ecophysiology translated to proxies of fitness, but the intensity and direction of the relationships were context dependent and affected by 5-azaC. The study suggests that effects of DNA methylation depend on conditions of plant origin and current climate. Direction of 5-azaC effects suggests limited role of epigenetic modifications in long-term adaptation of plants. It rather facilitates fast adaptations to temporal fluctuations of the environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Veronika Kosová
- grid.4491.80000 0004 1937 116XDepartment of Botany, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Vít Latzel
- grid.418095.10000 0001 1015 3316Institute of Botany, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Průhonice, Czech Republic
| | - Věroslava Hadincová
- grid.418095.10000 0001 1015 3316Institute of Botany, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Průhonice, Czech Republic
| | - Zuzana Münzbergová
- grid.4491.80000 0004 1937 116XDepartment of Botany, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic ,grid.418095.10000 0001 1015 3316Institute of Botany, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Průhonice, Czech Republic
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30
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Sump B, Brickner J. Establishment and inheritance of epigenetic transcriptional memory. Front Mol Biosci 2022; 9:977653. [PMID: 36120540 PMCID: PMC9479176 DOI: 10.3389/fmolb.2022.977653] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/27/2022] [Accepted: 07/29/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
For certain inducible genes, the rate and molecular mechanism of transcriptional activation depends on the prior experiences of the cell. This phenomenon, called epigenetic transcriptional memory, accelerates reactivation and requires both changes in chromatin structure and recruitment of poised RNA Polymerase II (RNAPII) to the promoter. Forms of epigenetic transcriptional memory have been identified in S. cerevisiae, D. melanogaster, C. elegans, and mammals. A well-characterized model of memory is found in budding yeast where memory of inositol starvation involves a positive feedback loop between gene-and condition-specific transcription factors, which mediate an interaction with the nuclear pore complex and a characteristic histone modification: histone H3 lysine 4 dimethylation (H3K4me2). This histone modification permits recruitment of a memory-specific pre-initiation complex, poising RNAPII at the promoter. During memory, H3K4me2 is essential for recruitment of RNAPII and faster reactivation, but RNAPII is not required for H3K4me2. Unlike the RNAPII-dependent H3K4me2 associated with active transcription, RNAPII-independent H3K4me2 requires Nup100, SET3C, the Leo1 subunit of the Paf1 complex and can be inherited through multiple cell cycles upon disrupting the interaction with the Nuclear Pore Complex. The H3K4 methyltransferase (COMPASS) physically interacts with the potential reader (SET3C), suggesting a molecular mechanism for the spreading and re-incorporation of H3K4me2 following DNA replication. Thus, epigenetic transcriptional memory is a conserved adaptation that utilizes a heritable chromatin state, allowing cells and organisms to alter their gene expression programs in response to recent experiences over intermediate time scales.
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Cortés AJ, López-Hernández F, Blair MW. Genome-Environment Associations, an Innovative Tool for Studying Heritable Evolutionary Adaptation in Orphan Crops and Wild Relatives. Front Genet 2022; 13:910386. [PMID: 35991553 PMCID: PMC9389289 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2022.910386] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/01/2022] [Accepted: 05/30/2022] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Leveraging innovative tools to speed up prebreeding and discovery of genotypic sources of adaptation from landraces, crop wild relatives, and orphan crops is a key prerequisite to accelerate genetic gain of abiotic stress tolerance in annual crops such as legumes and cereals, many of which are still orphan species despite advances in major row crops. Here, we review a novel, interdisciplinary approach to combine ecological climate data with evolutionary genomics under the paradigm of a new field of study: genome-environment associations (GEAs). We first exemplify how GEA utilizes in situ georeferencing from genotypically characterized, gene bank accessions to pinpoint genomic signatures of natural selection. We later discuss the necessity to update the current GEA models to predict both regional- and local- or micro-habitat-based adaptation with mechanistic ecophysiological climate indices and cutting-edge GWAS-type genetic association models. Furthermore, to account for polygenic evolutionary adaptation, we encourage the community to start gathering genomic estimated adaptive values (GEAVs) for genomic prediction (GP) and multi-dimensional machine learning (ML) models. The latter two should ideally be weighted by de novo GWAS-based GEA estimates and optimized for a scalable marker subset. We end the review by envisioning avenues to make adaptation inferences more robust through the merging of high-resolution data sources, such as environmental remote sensing and summary statistics of the genomic site frequency spectrum, with the epigenetic molecular functionality responsible for plastic inheritance in the wild. Ultimately, we believe that coupling evolutionary adaptive predictions with innovations in ecological genomics such as GEA will help capture hidden genetic adaptations to abiotic stresses based on crop germplasm resources to assist responses to climate change. "I shall endeavor to find out how nature's forces act upon one another, and in what manner the geographic environment exerts its influence on animals and plants. In short, I must find out about the harmony in nature" Alexander von Humboldt-Letter to Karl Freiesleben, June 1799.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrés J. Cortés
- Corporacion Colombiana de Investigacion Agropecuaria AGROSAVIA, C.I. La Selva, Rionegro, Colombia
| | - Felipe López-Hernández
- Corporacion Colombiana de Investigacion Agropecuaria AGROSAVIA, C.I. La Selva, Rionegro, Colombia
| | - Matthew W. Blair
- Department of Agricultural & Environmental Sciences, Tennessee State University, Nashville, TN, United States
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Marshall IR, Brauer CJ, Wedderburn SD, Whiterod NS, Hammer MP, Barnes TC, Attard CRM, Möller LM, Beheregaray LB. Longitudinal monitoring of neutral and adaptive genomic diversity in a reintroduction. CONSERVATION BIOLOGY : THE JOURNAL OF THE SOCIETY FOR CONSERVATION BIOLOGY 2022; 36:e13889. [PMID: 35023224 DOI: 10.1111/cobi.13889] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/26/2021] [Revised: 12/16/2021] [Accepted: 12/28/2021] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Restoration programs in the form of ex-situ breeding combined with reintroductions are becoming critical to counteract demographic declines and species losses. Such programs are increasingly using genetic management to improve conservation outcomes. However, the lack of long-term monitoring of genetic indicators following reintroduction prevents assessments of the trajectory and persistence of reintroduced populations. We carried out an extensive monitoring program in the wild for a threatened small-bodied fish (southern pygmy perch, Nannoperca australis) to assess the long-term genomic effects of its captive breeding and reintroduction. The species was rescued prior to its extirpation from the terminal lakes of Australia's Murray-Darling Basin, and then used for genetically informed captive breeding and reintroductions. Subsequent annual or biannual monitoring of abundance, fitness, and occupancy over a period of 11 years, combined with postreintroduction genetic sampling, revealed survival and recruitment of reintroduced fish. Genomic analyses based on data from the original wild rescued, captive born, and reintroduced cohorts revealed low inbreeding and strong maintenance of neutral and candidate adaptive genomic diversity across multiple generations. An increasing trend in the effective population size of the reintroduced population was consistent with field monitoring data in demonstrating successful re-establishment of the species. This provides a rare empirical example that the adaptive potential of a locally extinct population can be maintained during genetically informed ex-situ conservation breeding and reintroduction into the wild. Strategies to improve biodiversity restoration via ex-situ conservation should include genetic-based captive breeding and longitudinal monitoring of standing genomic variation in reintroduced populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Imogen R Marshall
- Molecular Ecology Laboratory, College of Science and Engineering, Flinders University, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
| | - Chris J Brauer
- Molecular Ecology Laboratory, College of Science and Engineering, Flinders University, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
| | - Scotte D Wedderburn
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
| | - Nick S Whiterod
- Aquasave-Nature Glenelg Trust, Victor Harbor, South Australia, Australia
| | - Michael P Hammer
- Natural Sciences, Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia
| | - Thomas C Barnes
- New South Wales Department of Primary Industries, Port Stephens Fisheries Institute, Nelson Bay, New South Wales, Australia
- Institute of Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia
| | - Catherine R M Attard
- Molecular Ecology Laboratory, College of Science and Engineering, Flinders University, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
| | - Luciana M Möller
- Molecular Ecology Laboratory, College of Science and Engineering, Flinders University, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
| | - Luciano B Beheregaray
- Molecular Ecology Laboratory, College of Science and Engineering, Flinders University, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
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Proćków M, Kuźnik-Kowalska E, Żeromska A, Mackiewicz P. Temporal variation in climatic factors influences phenotypic diversity of Trochulus land snails. Sci Rep 2022; 12:12357. [PMID: 35853920 PMCID: PMC9296580 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-16638-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2021] [Accepted: 07/13/2022] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Organisms with limited dispersal capabilities should show phenotypic plasticity in situ to keep pace with environmental changes. Therefore, to study the influence of environmental variation on the phenotypic diversity, we chose land snails, Trochulus hispidus and T. sericeus, characterized by high population variability. We performed long-term field studies as well as laboratory and common garden experiments, which revealed that temporal environmental changes generate visible variation in shell size and shape of these snails. Many shell measurements of T. hispidus varied significantly with temperature and humidity in individual years. According to this, the first generation of T. hispidus, bred in controlled laboratory conditions, became significantly different in higher spire and narrower umbilicus from its wild parents. Interestingly, offspring produced by this generation and transplanted to wild conditions returned to the ‘wild’ flat and wide-umbilicated shell shape. Moreover, initially different species T. hispidus and T. sericeus transferred into common environment conditions revealed rapid and convergent shell modifications within one generation. Such morphological flexibility and high genetic variation can be evolutionarily favored, when the environment is heterogeneous in time. The impact of climate change on the shell morphometry can lead to incorrect taxonomic classification or delimitation of artificial taxa in land snails. These findings have also important implications in the context of changing climate and environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Małgorzata Proćków
- Museum of Natural History, University of Wrocław, Sienkiewicza 21, 50-335, Wrocław, Poland. .,Department of Bioinformatics and Genomics, Faculty of Biotechnology, University of Wrocław, Joliot-Curie 14a, 50-383, Wrocław, Poland.
| | - Elżbieta Kuźnik-Kowalska
- Department of Invertebrate Systematics and Ecology, Institute of Environmental Biology, Wrocław University of Environmental and Life Sciences, Kożuchowska 5b, 51-631, Wrocław, Poland
| | - Aleksandra Żeromska
- Department of Bioinformatics and Genomics, Faculty of Biotechnology, University of Wrocław, Joliot-Curie 14a, 50-383, Wrocław, Poland
| | - Paweł Mackiewicz
- Department of Bioinformatics and Genomics, Faculty of Biotechnology, University of Wrocław, Joliot-Curie 14a, 50-383, Wrocław, Poland.
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Liu S, Tengstedt ANB, Jacobsen MW, Pujolar JM, Jónsson B, Lobón-Cervià J, Bernatchez L, Hansen MM. Genome-wide methylation in the panmictic European eel (Anguilla anguilla). Mol Ecol 2022; 31:4286-4306. [PMID: 35767387 DOI: 10.1111/mec.16586] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2022] [Revised: 06/21/2022] [Accepted: 06/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
The role of methylation in adaptive, developmental and speciation processes has attracted considerable interest, but interpretation of results is complicated by diffuse boundaries between genetic and non-genetic variation. We studied whole genome genetic and methylation variation in the European eel, distributed from subarctic to subtropical environments, but with panmixia precluding genetically based local adaptation beyond single-generation responses. Overall methylation was 70.9%, with hypomethylation predominantly found in promoters and first exons. Redundancy analyses involving juvenile glass eels showed 0.06% and 0.03% of the variance at SNPs to be explained by localities and environmental variables, respectively, with GO terms of genes associated with outliers primarily involving neural system functioning. For CpGs 2.98% and 1.36% of variance was explained by localities and environmental variables. Differentially methylated regions particularly included genes involved in developmental processes, with hox clusters featuring prominently. Life stage (adult versus glass eels) was the most important source of inter-individual variation in methylation, likely reflecting both ageing and developmental processes. Demethylation of transposable elements relative to pure European eel was observed in European X American eel hybrids, possibly representing postzygotic barriers in this system characterized by prolonged speciation and ongoing gene flow. Whereas the genetic data are consistent with a role of single-generation selective responses, the methylation results underpin the importance of epigenetics in the life cycle of eels and suggests interactions between local environments, development and phenotypic variation mediated by methylation variation. Eels are remarkable by having retained eight hox clusters, and the results suggest important roles of methylation at hox genes for adaptive processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shenglin Liu
- Department of Biology, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
| | | | - Magnus W Jacobsen
- Section for Marine Living Resources, National Institute of Aquatic Resources, Technical University of Denmark, Silkeborg, Denmark
| | - Jose Martin Pujolar
- Centre for Gelatinous Plankton Ecology and Evolution, National Institute of Aquatic Resources, Technical University of Denmark, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Bjarni Jónsson
- North West Iceland Nature Center, Iceland.,The Icelandic Parliament, Reykjavík, Iceland
| | | | - Louis Bernatchez
- IBIS (Institut de Biologie Intégrative et des Systèmes), Université Laval, Québec, Canada
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Campoy JG, Sobral M, Carro B, Lema M, Barreiro R, Retuerto R. Epigenetic and Phenotypic Responses to Experimental Climate Change of Native and Invasive Carpobrotus edulis. FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE 2022; 13:888391. [PMID: 35783928 PMCID: PMC9247612 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2022.888391] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2022] [Accepted: 04/28/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Despite the recent discoveries on how DNA methylation could help plants to adapt to changing environments, the relationship between epigenetics and climate change or invasion in new areas is still poorly known. Here, we investigated, through a field experiment, how the new expected climate scenarios for Southern Europe, i.e., increased temperature and decreased rainfall, might affect global DNA methylation in relation to phenotypic variation in individuals of clonal plant, Carpobrotus edulis, from its native (Southern African) and invaded (northwestern Iberian Peninsula) area. Our results showed that changes in temperature and rainfall induced phenotypic but not global DNA methylation differences among plants, and the climatic effects were similar for plants coming from the native or invaded areas. The individuals from the Iberian Peninsula showed higher levels of global methylation than their native counterparts from South Africa. We also observed differences between natives and invasive phenotypes in traits related to the pattern of biomass partitioning and to the strategies for water uptake and use and found an epigenetic contribution to phenotypic changes in some leaf traits, especially on the nitrogen isotopic composition. We conclude that the increased temperature and decreased rainfall projected for Southern Europe during the course of the twenty-first century may foster phenotypic changes in C. edulis, possibly endowing this species with a higher ability to successful cope the rapid environmental shifts. The epigenetic and phenotypic divergence that we observed between native and invasive plants suggests an intraspecific functional variation during the process of invasion. This result could indicate that phenotypic plasticity and global DNA methylation are related to the colonization of new habitats. Our findings reinforce the importance of epigenetic plasticity on rapid adaptation of invasive clonal plants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Josefina G. Campoy
- Departamento de Bioloxía Funcional, Facultade de Bioloxía, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, Santiago de Compostela, Spain
| | - Mar Sobral
- Departamento de Bioloxía Funcional, Facultade de Bioloxía, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, Santiago de Compostela, Spain
| | - Belén Carro
- Biocost, Facultad de Ciencias and Centro de Investigaciones Científicas Avanzadas (CICA), Universidad de A Coruña, A Coruña, Spain
| | - Margarita Lema
- Departamento de Bioloxía Funcional, Facultade de Bioloxía, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, Santiago de Compostela, Spain
| | - Rodolfo Barreiro
- Biocost, Facultad de Ciencias and Centro de Investigaciones Científicas Avanzadas (CICA), Universidad de A Coruña, A Coruña, Spain
| | - Rubén Retuerto
- Departamento de Bioloxía Funcional, Facultade de Bioloxía, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, Santiago de Compostela, Spain
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36
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Quan J, Münzbergová Z, Latzel V. Time dynamics of stress legacy in clonal transgenerational effects: A case study on
Trifolium repens. Ecol Evol 2022; 12:e8959. [PMID: 35646308 PMCID: PMC9130644 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.8959] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2021] [Revised: 05/01/2022] [Accepted: 05/05/2022] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Stress can be remembered by plants in a form of stress legacy that can alter future phenotypes of previously stressed plants and even phenotypes of their offspring. DNA methylation belongs among the mechanisms mediating the stress legacy. It is however not known for how long the stress legacy is carried by plants. If the legacy is long‐lasting, it can become maladaptive in situations when parental–offspring environment do not match. We investigated for how long after the last exposure of a parental plant to drought can the phenotype of its clonal offspring be altered. We grew parental plants of three genotypes of Trifolium repens for five months either in control conditions or in control conditions that were interrupted with intense drought periods applied for two months in four different time slots. We also treated half of the parental plants with a demethylating agent (5‐azacytidine, 5‐azaC) to test for the potential role of DNA methylation in the stress memory. Then, we transplanted parental cuttings (ramets) individually to control environment and allowed them to produce offspring ramets for two months. The drought stress experienced by parents affected phenotypes of offspring ramets. The stress legacy resulted in enhanced number of offspring ramets originating from plants that experienced drought stress even 56 days before their transplantation to the control environment. 5‐azaC altered transgenerational effects on offspring ramets. We confirmed that drought stress can trigger transgenerational effects in T. repens that is very likely mediated by DNA methylation. Most importantly, the stress legacy in parental plants persisted for at least 8 weeks suggesting that the stress legacy can persist in a clonal plant Trifolium repens for relatively long period. We suggest that the stress legacy should be considered in future ecological studies on clonal plants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiaxin Quan
- Key Laboratory of Resource Biology and Biotechnology in Western China Ministry of Education Northwest University Xi’an China
- Institute of Botany Czech Academy of Sciences Průhonice Czech Republic
| | - Zuzana Münzbergová
- Institute of Botany Czech Academy of Sciences Průhonice Czech Republic
- Department of Botany Faculty of Science Charles University Prague Czech Republic
| | - Vít Latzel
- Institute of Botany Czech Academy of Sciences Průhonice Czech Republic
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Ji SX, Wang XD, Lin ZK, Wan FH, Lü ZC, Liu WX. Characterization of Chromatin Remodeling Genes Involved in Thermal Tolerance of Biologically Invasive Bemisia tabaci. Front Physiol 2022; 13:865172. [PMID: 35669578 PMCID: PMC9163341 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2022.865172] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/06/2022] [Accepted: 04/13/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
As an invasive species, Bemisia tabaci Mediterranean (MED) has notable potential to adapt to a wide range of environmental temperatures, which enables it to successfully spread after invasion and occupy habitats over a wide latitude range. It has been postulated that chromatin remodeling mechanisms are related to the rapid acquisition of adaptive traits and thermal resistance in invasive species; however, relevant experimental evidence is scarce. To identify the molecular characteristics and assess the role of chromatin remodelers in thermal stress within invasive MED and native Asia II 1 of the B. tabaci species complex, we identified 13 switching defective/sucrose non-fermenting (SWI/SNF) and 10 imitation switch (ISWI) family members in the B. tabaci genome, analyzed their molecular characteristics and structures, and identified key mutation sites between MED and Asia II 1, then cloned the catalytic subunits, and revealed the difference in thermal tolerance function. The results showed that the expression levels of Bt-BRM-1 and Bt-BRM-2 were significantly higher in MED than in Asia II 1 during heat stress, and Bt-BRM-2 expression was significantly higher during cold stress. In addition, RNA interference results indicated that the two target genes had similar temperature tolerance function in the both two cryptic species. This study is the first to identify and analyze the molecular characteristics of SWI/SNF and ISWI family members and reveal their potential key roles in temperature tolerance in poikilothermic ectotherms. The results will assist in understanding the underlying temperature adaptation mechanism of invasive insects and will enrich stress adaptation research systems from an epigenetic perspective.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shun-Xia Ji
- State Key Laboratory for Biology of Plant Diseases and Insect Pests, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Xiao-Di Wang
- State Key Laboratory for Biology of Plant Diseases and Insect Pests, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Ze-Kai Lin
- State Key Laboratory for Biology of Plant Diseases and Insect Pests, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Fang-Hao Wan
- State Key Laboratory for Biology of Plant Diseases and Insect Pests, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China
- Agricultural Genome Institute at Shenzhen, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shenzhen, China
| | - Zhi-Chuang Lü
- State Key Laboratory for Biology of Plant Diseases and Insect Pests, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China
- *Correspondence: Zhi-Chuang Lü,
| | - Wan-Xue Liu
- State Key Laboratory for Biology of Plant Diseases and Insect Pests, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China
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38
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Genetic and Epigenetic Signatures Associated with the Divergence of Aquilegia Species. Genes (Basel) 2022; 13:genes13050793. [PMID: 35627179 PMCID: PMC9141525 DOI: 10.3390/genes13050793] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/28/2022] [Revised: 04/21/2022] [Accepted: 04/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Widely grown in the Northern Hemisphere, the genus Aquilegia (columbine) is a model system in adaptive radiation research. While morphological variations between species have been associated with environmental factors, such as pollinators, how genetic and epigenetic factors are involved in the rapid divergence in this genus remains under investigated. In this study, we surveyed the genomes and DNA methylomes of ten Aquilegia species, representative of the Asian, European and North American lineages. Our analyses of the phylogeny and population structure revealed high genetic and DNA methylomic divergence across these three lineages. By multi-level genome-wide scanning, we identified candidate genes exhibiting lineage-specific genetic or epigenetic variation patterns that were signatures of inter-specific divergence. We demonstrated that these species-specific genetic variations and epigenetic variabilities are partially independent and are both functionally related to various biological processes vital to adaptation, including stress tolerance, cell reproduction and DNA repair. Our study provides an exploratory overview of how genetic and epigenetic signatures are associated with the diversification of the Aquilegia species.
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40
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Budd AM, Robins JB, Whybird O, Jerry DR. Epigenetics underpins phenotypic plasticity of protandrous sex change in fish. Ecol Evol 2022; 12:e8730. [PMID: 35342607 PMCID: PMC8931711 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.8730] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2022] [Accepted: 02/22/2022] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Phenotypic plasticity is an important driver of species resilience. Often mediated by epigenetic changes, phenotypic plasticity enables individual genotypes to express variable phenotypes in response to environmental change. Barramundi (Lates calcarifer) are a protandrous (male-first) sequential hermaphrodite that exhibits plasticity in length-at-sex change between geographic regions. This plasticity is likely to be mediated by changes in DNA methylation (DNAm), a well-studied epigenetic modification. To investigate the relationships between length, sex, and DNAm in a sequential hermaphrodite, here, we compare DNAm in four conserved vertebrate sex-determining genes in male and female barramundi of differing lengths from three geographic regions of northern Australia. Barramundi first mature as male and later sex change to female upon the attainment of a larger body size; however, a general pattern of increasing female-specific DNAm markers with increasing length was not observed. Significant differences in DNAm between males and females of similar lengths suggest that female-specific DNAm arises rapidly during sex change, rather than gradually with fish growth. The findings also reveal that region-specific differences in length-at-sex change are accompanied by differences in DNAm and are consistent with variability in remotely sensed sea temperature and salinity. Together, these findings provide the first in situ evidence for epigenetically and environmentally mediated sex change in a protandrous hermaphrodite and offer significant insight into the molecular and ecological processes governing the marked and unique plasticity of sex in fish.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alyssa M Budd
- Centre for Sustainable Tropical Fisheries and Aquaculture James Cook University Townsville Qld Australia
- Centre for Tropical Bioinformatics and Molecular Biology James Cook University Townsville Qld Australia
| | - Julie B Robins
- Ecosciences Precinct Department of Agriculture and Fisheries Brisbane Qld Australia
| | - Olivia Whybird
- Northern Fisheries Centre Department of Agriculture and Fisheries Cairns Qld Australia
| | - Dean R Jerry
- Centre for Sustainable Tropical Fisheries and Aquaculture James Cook University Townsville Qld Australia
- Tropical Futures Institute James Cook University Singapore City Singapore
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Abstract
Epigenetic mechanisms such as DNA methylation, histone modifications and non-coding RNAs are increasingly targeted in studies of natural populations. Here, I review some of the insights gained from this research, examine some of the methods currently in use and discuss some of the challenges that researchers working on natural populations are likely to face when probing epigenetic mechanisms. While studies supporting the involvement of epigenetic mechanisms in generating phenotypic variation in natural populations are amassing, many of these studies are currently correlative in nature. Thus, while empirical data point to widespread contributions of epigenetic mechanisms in generating phenotypic variation, there are still concerns as to whether epigenetic variation is instead ultimately controlled by genetic variation. Disentangling these two sources of variation will be a key to resolving the debate about the importance of epigenetic mechanisms, and studies on natural populations that partition the relative contribution of genetic and epigenetic factors to phenotypic variation can play an important role in this debate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arild Husby
- Evolutionary Biology, Department of Ecology and Genetics, Uppsala University, Norbyvägen 18D, SE-75236 Uppsala, Sweden.,Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics, Norwegian University for Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway
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42
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Harney E, Paterson S, Collin H, Chan BH, Bennett D, Plaistow SJ. Pollution induces epigenetic effects that are stably transmitted across multiple generations. Evol Lett 2022; 6:118-135. [PMID: 35386832 PMCID: PMC8966472 DOI: 10.1002/evl3.273] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/25/2021] [Revised: 12/15/2021] [Accepted: 12/16/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
It has been hypothesized that the effects of pollutants on phenotypes can be passed to subsequent generations through epigenetic inheritance, affecting populations long after the removal of a pollutant. But there is still little evidence that pollutants can induce persistent epigenetic effects in animals. Here, we show that low doses of commonly used pollutants induce genome‐wide differences in cytosine methylation in the freshwater crustacean Daphnia pulex. Uniclonal populations were either continually exposed to pollutants or switched to clean water, and methylation was compared to control populations that did not experience pollutant exposure. Although some direct changes to methylation were only present in the continually exposed populations, others were present in both the continually exposed and switched to clean water treatments, suggesting that these modifications had persisted for 7 months (>15 generations). We also identified modifications that were only present in the populations that had switched to clean water, indicating a long‐term legacy of pollutant exposure distinct from the persistent effects. Pollutant‐induced differential methylation tended to occur at sites that were highly methylated in controls. Modifications that were observed in both continually and switched treatments were highly methylated in controls and showed reduced methylation in the treatments. On the other hand, modifications found just in the switched treatment tended to have lower levels of methylation in the controls and showed increase methylation in the switched treatment. In a second experiment, we confirmed that sublethal doses of the same pollutants generate effects on life histories for at least three generations following the removal of the pollutant. Our results demonstrate that even low doses of pollutants can induce transgenerational epigenetic effects that are stably transmitted over many generations. Persistent effects are likely to influence phenotypic development, which could contribute to the rapid adaptation, or extinction, of populations confronted by anthropogenic stressors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ewan Harney
- Evolution, Ecology and Behaviour, Institute of Infection, Veterinary and Ecological Sciences University of Liverpool Liverpool L69 7ZB United Kingdom
- Current address: Institute of Evolutionary Biology (CSIC‐UPF) CMIMA Building Barcelona 08003 Spain
| | - Steve Paterson
- Evolution, Ecology and Behaviour, Institute of Infection, Veterinary and Ecological Sciences University of Liverpool Liverpool L69 7ZB United Kingdom
| | - Hélène Collin
- Evolution, Ecology and Behaviour, Institute of Infection, Veterinary and Ecological Sciences University of Liverpool Liverpool L69 7ZB United Kingdom
| | - Brian H.K. Chan
- Evolution, Ecology and Behaviour, Institute of Infection, Veterinary and Ecological Sciences University of Liverpool Liverpool L69 7ZB United Kingdom
- Current address: Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health The University of Manchester Manchester M13 9PT United Kingdom
| | - Daimark Bennett
- Molecular and Physiology Cell Signalling, Institute of Systems, Molecular and Integrative Biology University of Liverpool Liverpool L69 7ZB United Kingdom
| | - Stewart J. Plaistow
- Evolution, Ecology and Behaviour, Institute of Infection, Veterinary and Ecological Sciences University of Liverpool Liverpool L69 7ZB United Kingdom
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Hörandl E. Novel Approaches for Species Concepts and Delimitation in Polyploids and Hybrids. PLANTS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2022; 11:204. [PMID: 35050093 PMCID: PMC8781807 DOI: 10.3390/plants11020204] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/11/2021] [Revised: 01/07/2022] [Accepted: 01/10/2022] [Indexed: 05/08/2023]
Abstract
Hybridization and polyploidization are important processes for plant evolution. However, classification of hybrid or polyploid species has been notoriously difficult because of the complexity of processes and different evolutionary scenarios that do not fit with classical species concepts. Polyploid complexes are formed via combinations of allopolyploidy, autopolyploidy and homoploid hybridization with persisting sexual reproduction, resulting in many discrete lineages that have been classified as species. Polyploid complexes with facultative apomixis result in complicated net-work like clusters, or rarely in agamospecies. Various case studies illustrate the problems that apply to traditional species concepts to hybrids and polyploids. Conceptual progress can be made if lineage formation is accepted as an inevitable consequence of meiotic sex, which is established already in the first eukaryotes as a DNA restoration tool. The turnaround of the viewpoint that sex forms species as lineages helps to overcome traditional thinking of species as "units". Lineage formation and self-sustainability is the prerequisite for speciation and can also be applied to hybrids and polyploids. Species delimitation is aided by the improved recognition of lineages via various novel -omics methods, by understanding meiosis functions, and by recognizing functional phenotypes by considering morphological-physiological-ecological adaptations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elvira Hörandl
- Department of Systematics, Biodiversity and Evolution of Plants (with Herbarium), University of Goettingen, 37073 Göttingen, Germany
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Kato-Noguchi H. Allelopathy of Knotweeds as Invasive Plants. PLANTS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2021; 11:3. [PMID: 35009007 PMCID: PMC8747059 DOI: 10.3390/plants11010003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/18/2021] [Revised: 12/17/2021] [Accepted: 12/17/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Perennial herbaceous Fallopia is native to East Asia, and was introduced to Europe and North America in the 19th century as an ornamental plant. Fallopia has been spreading quickly and has naturalized in many countries. It is listed in the world's 100 worst alien species. Fallopia often forms dense monospecies stands through the interruption of the regeneration process of indigenous plant species. Allelopathy of Japanese knotweed (Fallopia japonica), giant knotweed (Fallopia sachalinensis), and Bohemian knotweed (Fallopia x bohemica) has been reported to play an essential role in its invasion. The exudate from their roots and/or rhizomes, and their plant residues inhibited the germination and growth of some other plant species. These knotweeds, which are non-mycorrhizal plants, also suppressed the abundance and species richness of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) in the rhizosphere soil. Such suppression was critical for most territorial plants to form the mutualism with AMF, which enhances the nutrient and water uptake, and the tolerance against pathogens and stress conditions. Several allelochemicals such as flavanols, stilbenes, and quinones were identified in the extracts, residues, and rhizosphere soil of the knotweeds. The accumulated evidence suggests that some of those allelochemicals in knotweeds may be released into the rhizosphere soil through the decomposition process of their plant parts, and the exudation from their rhizomes and roots. Those allelochemicals may inhibit the germination and growth of native plants, and suppress the mycorrhizal colonization of native plants, which provides the knotweeds with a competitive advantage, and interrupts the regeneration processes of native plants. Therefore, allelopathy of knotweeds may contribute to establishing their new habitats in the introduced ranges as invasive plant species. It is the first review article focusing on the allelopathy of knotweeds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hisashi Kato-Noguchi
- Department of Applied Biological Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Kagawa University, Miki 761-0795, Kagawa, Japan
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45
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Can Forest Trees Cope with Climate Change?-Effects of DNA Methylation on Gene Expression and Adaptation to Environmental Change. Int J Mol Sci 2021; 22:ijms222413524. [PMID: 34948318 PMCID: PMC8703565 DOI: 10.3390/ijms222413524] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2021] [Revised: 12/09/2021] [Accepted: 12/12/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Epigenetic modifications, including chromatin modifications and DNA methylation, play key roles in regulating gene expression in both plants and animals. Transmission of epigenetic markers is important for some genes to maintain specific expression patterns and preserve the status quo of the cell. This article provides a review of existing research and the current state of knowledge about DNA methylation in trees in the context of global climate change, along with references to the potential of epigenome editing tools and the possibility of their use for forest tree research. Epigenetic modifications, including DNA methylation, are involved in evolutionary processes, developmental processes, and environmental interactions. Thus, the implications of epigenetics are important for adaptation and phenotypic plasticity because they provide the potential for tree conservation in forest ecosystems exposed to adverse conditions resulting from global warming and regional climate fluctuations.
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46
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Heydenrych MJ, Saunders BJ, Bunce M, Jarman SN. Epigenetic Measurement of Key Vertebrate Population Biology Parameters. Front Ecol Evol 2021. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2021.617376] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
The age, sex, and sexual maturity of individual animals are key parameters in assessing wild populations and informing conservation management strategies. These parameters represent the reproductive potential of a population and can indicate recovery rates or vulnerabilities. Natural populations of wild animals are difficult to study; logistically, economically, and due to the impacts of invasive biomonitoring. Genetic and epigenetic analyses offer a low impact, low cost, and information-rich alternative. As epigenetic mechanisms are intrinsically linked with both biological aging and reproductive processes, DNA methylation can be used as a suitable biomarker for population biology study. This review assesses published research utilizing DNA methylation analysis in relation to three key population parameters: age, sex, and sexual maturity. We review studies on wild vertebrates that investigate epigenetic age relationships, with successful age estimation assays designed for mammals, birds, and fish. For both determination of sex and identification of sexual maturity, very little has been explored regarding DNA methylation-based assays. Related research, however, confirms the links between DNA methylation and these processes. Future development of age estimation assays for underrepresented and key conservation taxa is suggested, as is the experimental development and design of DNA methylation-based assays for both sex and sexual maturity identification, further expanding the genomics toolkit for population biology studies.
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Luviano N, Lopez M, Gawehns F, Chaparro C, Arimondo PB, Ivanovic S, David P, Verhoeven K, Cosseau C, Grunau C. The methylome of Biomphalaria glabrata and other mollusks: enduring modification of epigenetic landscape and phenotypic traits by a new DNA methylation inhibitor. Epigenetics Chromatin 2021; 14:48. [PMID: 34702322 PMCID: PMC8549274 DOI: 10.1186/s13072-021-00422-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/16/2021] [Accepted: 10/01/2021] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND 5-Methylcytosine (5mC) is an important epigenetic mark in eukaryotes. Little information about its role exists for invertebrates. To investigate the contribution of 5mC to phenotypic variation in invertebrates, alteration of methylation patterns needs to be produced. Here, we apply new non-nucleoside DNA methyltransferase inhibitors (DNMTi) to introduce aleatory changes into the methylome of mollusk species. RESULTS Flavanone inhibitor Flv1 was efficient in reducing 5mC in the freshwater snails Biomphalaria glabrata and Physa acuta, and to a lesser degree, probably due to lower stability in sea water, in the oyster Crassostrea gigas. Flv1 has no toxic effects and significantly decreased the 5mC level in the treated B. glabrata and in its offspring. Drug treatment triggers significant variation in the shell height in both generations. A reduced representation bisulfite-sequencing method called epiGBS corroborates hypomethylation effect of Flv1 in both B. glabrata generations and identifies seven Differential Methylated Regions (DMR) out of 32 found both in Flv1-exposed snails and its progeny, from which 5 were hypomethylated, demonstrating a multigenerational effect. By targeted bisulfite sequencing, we confirmed hypomethylation in a locus and show that it is associated with reduced gene expression. CONCLUSIONS Flv1 is a new and efficient DNMTi that can be used to induce transient and heritable modifications of the epigenetic landscape and phenotypic traits in mollusks, a phylum of the invertebrates in which epigenetics is understudied.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nelia Luviano
- IHPE, Univ Perpignan Via Domitia, CNRC, Ifremer, Univ Montpellier, Perpignan, France
| | - Marie Lopez
- Institut des Biomolécules Max Mousseron (IBMM), UMR 5247, CNRS, Univ Montpellier, ENSCM, Montpellier, France
- Epigenetic Targeting of Cancer (ETaC), CNRS FRE3600, Centre de Recherche et Développement Pierre Fabre, Toulouse, France
| | - Fleur Gawehns
- Bioinformatics Unit, Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW), Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Cristian Chaparro
- IHPE, Univ Perpignan Via Domitia, CNRC, Ifremer, Univ Montpellier, Perpignan, France
| | - Paola B Arimondo
- Epigenetic Targeting of Cancer (ETaC), CNRS FRE3600, Centre de Recherche et Développement Pierre Fabre, Toulouse, France
- Epigenetic Chemical Biology (EpiChBio), Department Structural Biology and Chemistry, UMR 3523, CNRS, Institute Pasteur, 75015, Paris, France
| | - Slavica Ivanovic
- Department of Terrestrial Ecology, Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW), Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Patrice David
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive (CEFE), Univ. Montpellier, CNRS - Université Paul Valéry Montpellier - EPHE, 1919 Route de Mende, 34293, Montpellier Cedex 5, France
| | - Koen Verhoeven
- Department of Terrestrial Ecology, Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW), Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Céline Cosseau
- IHPE, Univ Perpignan Via Domitia, CNRC, Ifremer, Univ Montpellier, Perpignan, France
| | - Christoph Grunau
- IHPE, Univ Perpignan Via Domitia, CNRC, Ifremer, Univ Montpellier, Perpignan, France.
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Denoyelle L, de Villemereuil P, Boyer F, Khelifi M, Gaffet C, Alberto F, Benjelloun B, Pompanon F. Genetic Variations and Differential DNA Methylation to Face Contrasted Climates in Small Ruminants: An Analysis on Traditionally-Managed Sheep and Goats. Front Genet 2021; 12:745284. [PMID: 34650601 PMCID: PMC8508783 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2021.745284] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/21/2021] [Accepted: 09/02/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The way in which living organisms mobilize a combination of long-term adaptive mechanisms and short-term phenotypic plasticity to face environmental variations is still largely unknown. In the context of climate change, understanding the genetic and epigenetic bases for adaptation and plasticity is a major stake for preserving genomic resources and the resilience capacity of livestock populations. We characterized both epigenetic and genetic variations by contrasting 22 sheep and 21 goats from both sides of a climate gradient, focusing on free-ranging populations from Morocco. We produced for each individual Whole-Genome Sequence at 12X coverage and MeDIP-Seq data, to identify regions under selection and those differentially methylated. For both species, the analysis of genetic differences (FST) along the genome between animals from localities with high vs. low temperature annual variations detected candidate genes under selection in relation to environmental perception (5 genes), immunity (4 genes), reproduction (8 genes) and production (11 genes). Moreover, we found for each species one differentially methylated gene, namely AGPTA4 in goat and SLIT3 in sheep, which were both related, among other functions, to milk production and muscle development. In both sheep and goats, the comparison between genomic regions impacted by genetic and epigenetic variations suggests that climatic variations impacted similar biological pathways but different genes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laure Denoyelle
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, Univ. Savoie Mont Blanc, CNRS, LECA, Grenoble, France.,GenPhySE, Université de Toulouse, INRAE, ENVT, Castanet Tolosan, France
| | - Pierre de Villemereuil
- Institut de Systématique, Évolution, Biodiversité (ISYEB), École Pratique des Hautes Études
- PSL, MNHN, CNRS, SU, UA, Paris, France
| | - Frédéric Boyer
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, Univ. Savoie Mont Blanc, CNRS, LECA, Grenoble, France
| | - Meidhi Khelifi
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, Univ. Savoie Mont Blanc, CNRS, LECA, Grenoble, France
| | - Clément Gaffet
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, Univ. Savoie Mont Blanc, CNRS, LECA, Grenoble, France
| | - Florian Alberto
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, Univ. Savoie Mont Blanc, CNRS, LECA, Grenoble, France
| | - Badr Benjelloun
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, Univ. Savoie Mont Blanc, CNRS, LECA, Grenoble, France.,Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique Maroc (INRA-Maroc), Centre Régional de Beni Mellal, Beni Mellal, Morocco
| | - François Pompanon
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, Univ. Savoie Mont Blanc, CNRS, LECA, Grenoble, France
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49
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Moschilla JA, Tomkins JL, Simmons LW. Nongenetic inheritance of behavioural variability is context specific and sex specific. Funct Ecol 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2435.13931] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Joe A. Moschilla
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology School of Biological Sciences (M092) The University of Western Australia Crawley WA Australia
| | - Joseph L. Tomkins
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology School of Biological Sciences (M092) The University of Western Australia Crawley WA Australia
| | - Leigh W. Simmons
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology School of Biological Sciences (M092) The University of Western Australia Crawley WA Australia
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50
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Herrera CM, Bazaga P, Pérez R, Alonso C. Lifetime genealogical divergence within plants leads to epigenetic mosaicism in the shrub Lavandula latifolia (Lamiaceae). THE NEW PHYTOLOGIST 2021; 231:2065-2076. [PMID: 33634863 DOI: 10.1111/nph.17257] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/13/2020] [Accepted: 02/01/2021] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Epigenetic mosaicism is a possible source of within-plant phenotypic heterogeneity, yet its frequency and developmental origin remain unexplored. This study examines whether extant epigenetic heterogeneity within Lavandula latifolia (Lamiaceae) shrubs reflects recent epigenetic modifications experienced independently by different plant parts or, alternatively, it is the cumulative outcome of a steady lifetime process. Leaf samples from different architectural modules (branch tips) were collected from three L. latifolia plants and characterized epigenetically by global DNA cytosine methylation and methylation state of methylation-sensitive amplified fragment-length polymorphism (MS-AFLP) markers. Epigenetic characteristics of modules were then assembled with information on the branching history of plants. Methods borrowed from phylogenetic research were used to assess genealogical signal of extant epigenetic variation and reconstruct within-plant genealogical trajectory of epigenetic traits. Plants were epigenetically heterogeneous, as shown by differences among modules in global DNA methylation and variation in the methylation states of 6 to 8% of MS-AFLP markers. All epigenetic features exhibited significant genealogical signal within plants. Events of epigenetic divergence occurred throughout the lifespan of individuals and were subsequently propagated by branch divisions. Internal epigenetic diversification of L. latifolia individuals took place steadily during their development, a process which eventually led to persistent epigenetic mosaicism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carlos M Herrera
- Estación Biológica de Doñana, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Avda. Américo Vespucio 26, Sevilla, E-41092, Spain
| | - Pilar Bazaga
- Estación Biológica de Doñana, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Avda. Américo Vespucio 26, Sevilla, E-41092, Spain
| | - Ricardo Pérez
- Instituto de Investigaciones Químicas, Centro de Investigaciones Científicas Isla de La Cartuja, CSIC-US, Avda. Américo Vespucio 49, Sevilla, E-41092, Spain
| | - Conchita Alonso
- Estación Biológica de Doñana, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Avda. Américo Vespucio 26, Sevilla, E-41092, Spain
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