1
|
Xing L, Quan J, Zhang S, Liu X, Bai H, Yue M. Changes induced by parental neighboring touch in the clonal plant Glechoma longituba depend on the light environment. FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE 2024; 15:1358924. [PMID: 38831907 PMCID: PMC11146198 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2024.1358924] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2023] [Accepted: 04/10/2024] [Indexed: 06/05/2024]
Abstract
Introduction Touch by neighboring plants is a common but overlooked environmental variable for plants, especially in dense vegetation. In addition, shade is inevitable for understory plants. The growth performance of clonal plant to the interaction between thigmomorphogenesis and shade response, and their impact on light adaptability is still unknown. Methods At the present study, parental ramets of Glechoma longituba were exposed to two conditions (neighboring touch and shade), and their offspring ramets were in ambient or shaded environment. The phenotype and growth of parental and offspring ramets were analyzed. Results The results showed that neighboring touch of parental ramets regulated the performance of offspring ramets, while the effect depended on the light environment. The parental neighboring touch occurring in ambient environment suppressed the expansion of leaf organ, showed as a shorter petiole and smaller leaf area. Moreover, G. longituba exhibited both shade avoidance and shade tolerance characters to shaded environment, such as increased leaf area ratio and leaf mass ratio, longer specific petiole length and specific stolon length. It was notable that these characters of shade response could be promoted by parental neighboring touch to some extent. Additionally, parental light environment plays an important role in offspring growth, parent with ambient light always had well-grown offspring whatever the light condition of offspring, but the growth of offspring whose parent in shaded environment was inhibited. Finally, for the offspring with shaded environment, the touch between parental ramets in shade environment showed a disadvantage on their growth, but the influence of the touch between parental ramets in ambient environment was slight. Discussion Overall, the interaction of parental neighboring touch and shade environment complicate the growth of understory plants, the performance of plants is the integrated effect of both. These findings are conducive to an in-depth understanding of the environmental adaptation of plants.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Linya Xing
- Key Laboratory of Resource Biology and Biotechnology in Western China, Ministry of Education, Northwest University, Xi’an, China
| | - Jiaxin Quan
- Key Laboratory of Resource Biology and Biotechnology in Western China, Ministry of Education, Northwest University, Xi’an, China
| | - Shuqi Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Resource Biology and Biotechnology in Western China, Ministry of Education, Northwest University, Xi’an, China
| | - Xiao Liu
- Key Laboratory of Resource Biology and Biotechnology in Western China, Ministry of Education, Northwest University, Xi’an, China
| | - Hua Bai
- Key Laboratory of Resource Biology and Biotechnology in Western China, Ministry of Education, Northwest University, Xi’an, China
| | - Ming Yue
- Key Laboratory of Resource Biology and Biotechnology in Western China, Ministry of Education, Northwest University, Xi’an, China
- Xi’an Botanical Garden of Shaanxi Province, Institute of Botany of Shaanxi Province, Xi’an, China
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Trotta V, Forlano P, Caccavo V, Fanti P, Battaglia D. Transgenerational plasticity in aphids reared in a poor-resource environment. CURRENT RESEARCH IN INSECT SCIENCE 2024; 5:100081. [PMID: 38694273 PMCID: PMC11061699 DOI: 10.1016/j.cris.2024.100081] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2023] [Revised: 04/15/2024] [Accepted: 04/17/2024] [Indexed: 05/04/2024]
Abstract
The changing environmental conditions can affect insect biology over multiple generations and phenotypic plasticity is important for coping with these changes. Transgenerational plasticity occurs when the environment in which the parents developed influences the plastic response of the offspring phenotype. In the present study, the plastic effects of resource limitation on important life history traits such as body size, fecundity, survival, and resistance to starvation of the pea aphid Acyrthosiphon pisum were investigated over two generations. This study focused on understanding how resource limitation can determine an adaptive expression of maternal effects and transgenerational plasticity in fitness-related traits. Aphids showed phenotypic plasticity for the life history traits investigated, as they performed better when grown in an optimal environment than in a resource-poor one. Also, aphids had a poorer performance if their mothers were raised in a resource-poor environment. The effects of transgenerational plasticity were observed only in response to resistance to starvation, through increased survival in the offspring of the mother reared in a resource-poor environment, suggesting an evolutionary bet-hedging strategy. The results of this study showed that the effects of adaptive transgenerational plasticity may be partially masked in stressful environments, where developmental problems instead predominate. More information on the transgenerational response to resource limitation across generations can contribute to a better understanding of aphid biology.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Vincenzo Trotta
- Scuola di Scienze Agrarie, Forestali, Alimentari ed Ambientali, Università degli Studi della Basilicata, Potenza, Italy
| | - Pierluigi Forlano
- Scuola di Scienze Agrarie, Forestali, Alimentari ed Ambientali, Università degli Studi della Basilicata, Potenza, Italy
| | - Vittoria Caccavo
- Dipartimento di Scienze, Università degli Studi della Basilicata, Potenza, Italy
| | - Paolo Fanti
- Dipartimento di Scienze, Università degli Studi della Basilicata, Potenza, Italy
| | - Donatella Battaglia
- Scuola di Scienze Agrarie, Forestali, Alimentari ed Ambientali, Università degli Studi della Basilicata, Potenza, Italy
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Earley TS, Feiner N, Alvarez MF, Coolon JD, Sultan SE. The relative impact of parental and current environment on plant transcriptomes depends on type of stress and genotype. Proc Biol Sci 2023; 290:20230824. [PMID: 37752834 PMCID: PMC10523085 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2023.0824] [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: 04/06/2023] [Accepted: 08/30/2023] [Indexed: 09/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Through developmental plasticity, an individual organism integrates influences from its immediate environment with those due to the environment of its parents. While both effects on phenotypes are well documented, their relative impact has been little studied in natural systems, especially at the level of gene expression. We examined this issue in four genotypes of the annual plant Persicaria maculosa by varying two key resources-light and soil moisture-in both generations. Transcriptomic analyses showed that the relative effects of parent and offspring environment on gene expression (i.e. the number of differentially expressed transcripts, DETs) varied both for the two types of resource stress and among genotypes. For light, immediate environment induced more DETs than parental environment for all genotypes, although the precise proportion of parental versus immediate DETs varied among genotypes. By contrast, the relative effect of soil moisture varied dramatically among genotypes, from 8-fold more DETs due to parental than immediate conditions to 10-fold fewer. These findings provide evidence at the transcriptomic level that the relative impacts of parental and immediate environment on the developing organism may depend on the environmental factor and vary strongly among genotypes, providing potential for the interplay of these developmental influences to evolve.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Timothy S. Earley
- Biology Department, Wesleyan University, 52 Lawn Avenue, Middletown, CT 06459, USA
| | | | - Mariano F. Alvarez
- Biology Department, Wesleyan University, 52 Lawn Avenue, Middletown, CT 06459, USA
| | - Joseph D. Coolon
- Biology Department, Wesleyan University, 52 Lawn Avenue, Middletown, CT 06459, USA
| | - Sonia E. Sultan
- Biology Department, Wesleyan University, 52 Lawn Avenue, Middletown, CT 06459, USA
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Colicchio JM, Amstutz CL, Garcia N, Prabhu KN, Cairns TM, Akman M, Gottilla T, Gollery T, Stricklin SL, Bayer TS. A tool for rapid, automated characterization of population epigenomics in plants. Sci Rep 2023; 13:12915. [PMID: 37591855 PMCID: PMC10435466 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-38356-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/16/2023] [Accepted: 07/06/2023] [Indexed: 08/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Epigenetic variation in plant populations is an important factor in determining phenotype and adaptation to the environment. However, while advances have been made in the molecular and computational methods to analyze the methylation status of a given sample of DNA, tools to profile and compare the methylomes of multiple individual plants or groups of plants at high resolution and low cost are lacking. Here, we describe a computational approach and R package (sounDMR) that leverages the benefits of long read nanopore sequencing to enable robust identification of differential methylation from complex experimental designs, as well as assess the variability within treatment groups and identify individual plants of interest. We demonstrate the utility of this approach by profiling a population of Arabidopsis thaliana exposed to a demethylating agent and identify genomic regions of high epigenetic variability between individuals. Given the low cost of nanopore sequencing devices and the ease of sample preparation, these results show that high resolution epigenetic profiling of plant populations can be made more broadly accessible in plant breeding and biotechnology.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | - Melis Akman
- Sound Agriculture Company, Emeryville, CA, USA
| | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
5
|
Bhushan S, Singh AK, Thakur Y, Baskar R. Persistence of parental age effect on somatic mutation rates across generations in Arabidopsis. BMC PLANT BIOLOGY 2023; 23:152. [PMID: 36944916 PMCID: PMC10031922 DOI: 10.1186/s12870-023-04150-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2022] [Accepted: 03/02/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
In the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana, parental age is known to affect somatic mutation rates in their immediate progeny and here we show that this age dependent effect persists across successive generations. Using a set of detector lines carrying the mutated uidA gene, we examined if a particular parental age maintained across five consecutive generations affected the rates of base substitution (BSR), intrachromosomal recombination (ICR), frameshift mutation (FS), and transposition. The frequency of functional GUS reversions were assessed in seedlings as a function of identical/different parental ages across generations. In the context of a fixed parental age, BSR/ICR rates were unaffected in the first three generations, then dropped significantly in the 4th and increased in most instances in the 5th generation (e.g. BSR (F1 38 = 0.9, F2 38 = 1.14, F3 38 = 1.02, F4 38 = 0.5, F5 38 = 0.76)). On the other hand, with advancing parental ages, BSR/ICR rates remained high in the first two/three generations, with a striking resemblance in the pattern of mutation rates (BSR (F1 38 = 0.9, F1 43 = 0.53, F1 48 = 0.79, F1 53 = 0.83 and F2 38 = 1.14, F2 43 = 0.57, F2 48 = 0.64, F2 53 = 0.94). We adopted a novel approach of identifying and tagging flowers pollinated on a particular day, thereby avoiding biases due to potential emasculation induced stress responses. Our results suggest a time component in counting the number of generations a plant has passed through self-fertilization at a particular age in determining the somatic mutation rates.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Shashi Bhushan
- Department of Biotechnology, Bhupat and Jyoti Mehta School of Biosciences, Indian Institute of Technology-Madras, Chennai, 600 036, India
| | - Amit Kumar Singh
- Department of Plant Molecular Biology, University of Delhi South Campus, Benito Juarez Road, New Delhi, 110021, India
- Institut de Biologie Moléculaire des Plantes, UPR2357 CNRS, Université de Strasbourg, 12 rue du Général Zimmer, Strasbourg Cédex, 67084, France
| | - Yogendra Thakur
- Department of Biotechnology, Bhupat and Jyoti Mehta School of Biosciences, Indian Institute of Technology-Madras, Chennai, 600 036, India
| | - Ramamurthy Baskar
- Department of Biotechnology, Bhupat and Jyoti Mehta School of Biosciences, Indian Institute of Technology-Madras, Chennai, 600 036, India.
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Morgan BL, Donohue K. Parental methylation mediates how progeny respond to environments of parents and of progeny themselves. ANNALS OF BOTANY 2022; 130:883-899. [PMID: 36201313 PMCID: PMC9758305 DOI: 10.1093/aob/mcac125] [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: 06/01/2022] [Accepted: 10/04/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND AIMS Environments experienced by both parents and offspring influence progeny traits, but the epigenetic mechanisms that regulate the balance of parental vs. progeny control of progeny phenotypes are not known. We tested whether DNA methylation in parents and/or progeny mediates responses to environmental cues experienced in both generations. METHODS Using Arabidopsis thaliana, we manipulated parental and progeny DNA methylation both chemically, via 5-azacytidine, and genetically, via mutants of methyltransferase genes, then measured progeny germination responses to simulated canopy shade in parental and progeny generations. KEY RESULTS We first found that germination of offspring responded to parental but not seed demethylation. We further found that parental demethylation reversed the parental effect of canopy in seeds with low (Cvi-1) to intermediate (Col) dormancy, but it obliterated the parental effect in seeds with high dormancy (Cvi-0). Demethylation did so by either suppressing germination of seeds matured under white-light (Cvi-1) or under canopy (Cvi-0), or by increasing the germination of seeds matured under canopy (Col). Disruption of parental methylation also prevented seeds from responding to their own light environment in one genotype (Cvi-0, most dormant), but it enabled seeds to respond to their own environment in another genotype (Cvi-1, least dormant). Using mutant genotypes, we found that both CG and non-CG DNA methylation were involved in parental effects on seed germination. CONCLUSIONS Parental methylation state influences seed germination more strongly than does the progeny's own methylation state, and it influences how seeds respond to environments of parents and progeny in a genotype-specific manner.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Britany L Morgan
- University Program in Ecology Duke University, Durham, NC 27705, USA
- Center for Agricultural Synthetic Biology, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA
| | - Kathleen Donohue
- University Program in Ecology Duke University, Durham, NC 27705, USA
- Biology Department, Duke University, Durham, NC 27705, USA
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Morgan BL, Donohue K. Parental
DNA
methylation influences plasticity of early offspring traits, but offspring
DNA
methylation influences trait plasticity throughout life. Ecol Evol 2022. [DOI: 10.1002/ece3.9224] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Britany L. Morgan
- University Program in Ecology Duke University Durham North Carolina USA
- Center for Agricultural Synthetic Biology University of Tennessee Knoxville Tennessee USA
| | - Kathleen Donohue
- University Program in Ecology Duke University Durham North Carolina USA
- Biology Department Duke University Durham North Carolina USA
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Xue W, Huang L, Yu F, Bezemer TM. Light condition experienced by parent plants influences the response of offspring to light via both parental effects and soil legacy effects. Funct Ecol 2022. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2435.14136] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Wei Xue
- Institute of Wetland Ecology & Clone Ecology / Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation Taizhou University Taizhou China
| | - Lin Huang
- Institute of Wetland Ecology & Clone Ecology / Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation Taizhou University Taizhou China
| | - Fei‐Hai Yu
- Institute of Wetland Ecology & Clone Ecology / Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation Taizhou University Taizhou China
| | - T. Martijn Bezemer
- Institute of Biology Leiden (IBL) Aboveground Belowground Interactions Group, Leiden University Leiden The Netherlands
- Department of Terrestrial Ecology Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO‐KNAW) Wageningen The Netherlands
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Zhang LM, Roiloa SR, Zhang JF, Yu WH, Qiu CY, Wang DH, Yu FH. Clonal Parental Effects on Offspring Growth of Different Vegetative Generations in the Aquatic Plant Pistia stratiotes. FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE 2022; 13:890309. [PMID: 35832222 PMCID: PMC9272891 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2022.890309] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/05/2022] [Accepted: 05/30/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Parental (environmental) effects can modify the growth of offspring, which may play an essential role in their adaptation to environmental variation. While numerous studies have tested parental effects on offspring growth, most have considered offspring growth of only one generation and very few have considered offspring growth of different generations. We conducted a greenhouse experiment with an aquatic clonal plant Pistia stratiotes. We grew a single ramet of P. stratiotes under low or high nutrients, the initial (parent) ramets produced three different generations of offspring ramets, and these offspring ramets were also subjected to the same two nutrient levels. High nutrients currently experienced by the offspring increased biomass accumulation and ramet number of all three offspring generations of P. stratiotes. However, these positive effects on biomass were greater when the offspring ramets originated from the parent ramets grown under low nutrients than when they were produced by the parent ramets grown under high nutrients. These results suggest that parental effects can impact the performance of different offspring generations of clonal plants. However, heavier offspring ramets produced under high nutrients in parental conditions did not increase the subsequent growth of the offspring generations. This finding indicates that parental provisioning in favorable conditions may not always increase offspring growth, partly depending on root allocation but not ramet size such as ramet biomass.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Li-Min Zhang
- Institute of Wetland Ecology & Clone Ecology, Taizhou University, Taizhou, China
- Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation, Taizhou University, Taizhou, China
| | - Sergio R. Roiloa
- BioCost Group, Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Universidade da Coruña, A Coruña, Spain
| | - Jia-Fan Zhang
- Institute of Wetland Ecology & Clone Ecology, Taizhou University, Taizhou, China
- Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation, Taizhou University, Taizhou, China
| | - Wen-Han Yu
- Institute of Wetland Ecology & Clone Ecology, Taizhou University, Taizhou, China
- Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation, Taizhou University, Taizhou, China
| | - Chen-Yan Qiu
- Institute of Wetland Ecology & Clone Ecology, Taizhou University, Taizhou, China
- Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation, Taizhou University, Taizhou, China
| | - Dan-Hao Wang
- Institute of Wetland Ecology & Clone Ecology, Taizhou University, Taizhou, China
- Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation, Taizhou University, Taizhou, China
| | - Fei-Hai Yu
- Institute of Wetland Ecology & Clone Ecology, Taizhou University, Taizhou, China
- Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation, Taizhou University, Taizhou, China
| |
Collapse
|
10
|
Wang L, Chandrasekaran U, Luo X, Wei S, Shu K. Parental Shading Regulates Subsequent Seed Germination. FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE 2021; 12:748760. [PMID: 34819940 PMCID: PMC8606882 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2021.748760] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2021] [Accepted: 10/12/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Lei Wang
- School of Ecology and Environment, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi'an, China
- Research & Development Institute of Northwestern Polytechnical University in Shenzhen, Shenzhen, China
| | | | - Xiaofeng Luo
- School of Ecology and Environment, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi'an, China
| | - Shaowei Wei
- School of Ecology and Environment, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi'an, China
| | - Kai Shu
- School of Ecology and Environment, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi'an, China
- Research & Development Institute of Northwestern Polytechnical University in Shenzhen, Shenzhen, China
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
Sultan SE, Moczek AP, Walsh D. Bridging the explanatory gaps: What can we learn from a biological agency perspective? Bioessays 2021; 44:e2100185. [PMID: 34747061 DOI: 10.1002/bies.202100185] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2021] [Revised: 10/13/2021] [Accepted: 10/19/2021] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
We begin this article by delineating the explanatory gaps left by prevailing gene-focused approaches in our understanding of phenotype determination, inheritance, and the origin of novel traits. We aim not to diminish the value of these approaches but to highlight where their implementation, despite best efforts, has encountered persistent limitations. We then discuss how each of these explanatory gaps can be addressed by expanding research foci to take into account biological agency-the capacity of living systems at various levels to participate in their own development, maintenance, and function by regulating their structures and activities in response to conditions they encounter. Here we aim to define formally what agency and agents are and-just as importantly-what they are not, emphasizing that agency is an empirical property connoting neither intention nor consciousness. Lastly, we discuss how incorporating agency helps to bridge explanatory gaps left by conventional approaches, highlight scientific fields in which implicit agency approaches are already proving valuable, and assess the opportunities and challenges of more systematically incorporating biological agency into research programs.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sonia E Sultan
- Department of Biology, Wesleyan University, Middletown, Connecticut, USA
| | - Armin P Moczek
- Department of Biology, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana, USA
| | - Denis Walsh
- Department of Philosophy, Institute for the History and Philosophy of Science and Technology, Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| |
Collapse
|
12
|
Waterman R, Sultan SE. Transgenerational effects of parent plant competition on offspring development in contrasting conditions. Ecology 2021; 102:e03531. [PMID: 34496058 DOI: 10.1002/ecy.3531] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2021] [Revised: 06/13/2021] [Accepted: 07/08/2021] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Conditions during a parent's lifetime can induce phenotypic changes in offspring, providing a potentially important source of variation in natural populations. Yet, to date, biotic factors have seldom been tested as sources of transgenerational effects in plants. In a greenhouse experiment with the generalist annual Polygonum persicaria, we tested for effects of parental competition on offspring by growing isogenic parent plants either individually or in competitive arrays and comparing their seedling progeny in contrasting growth environments. Offspring of competing vs. non-competing parents showed significantly altered development, resulting in greater biomass and total leaf area, but only when growing in neighbor or simulated canopy shade, rather than sunny dry conditions. A follow-up experiment in which parent plants instead competed in dry soil found that offspring in dry soil had slightly reduced growth, both with and without competitors. In neither experiment were effects of parental competition explained by changes in seed provisioning, suggesting a more complex mode of regulatory inheritance. We hypothesize that parental competition in moist soil (i.e., primarily for light) confers specific developmental effects that are beneficial for light-limited offspring, while parental competition in dry soil (i.e., primarily for belowground resources) produces offspring of slightly lower overall quality. Together, these results indicate that competitive conditions during the parental generation can contribute significantly to offspring variation, but these transgenerational effects will depend on the abiotic resources available to both parents and progeny.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Robin Waterman
- Biology Department, Wesleyan University, Middletown, Connecticut, 06459, USA.,Department of Plant Biology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan, 48823, USA
| | - Sonia E Sultan
- Biology Department, Wesleyan University, Middletown, Connecticut, 06459, USA
| |
Collapse
|
13
|
Transgenerational Induction of Resistance to Phytophthora cinnamomi in Holm Oak. FORESTS 2021. [DOI: 10.3390/f12010100] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
The maternal environment of a tree species can influence the development and resistance of its offspring. Transgenerational induction of resistance is well known in plants but its occurrence in forest tree species has been less reported. Quercus ilex L. (holm oak) is a widespread Mediterranean tree species threatened by the invasive Phytophthora cinnamomi Rands pathogen. The influence of P. cinnamomi on the offspring of infected Q. ilex mother trees has not been studied. This study compared the performance and tolerance to P. cinnamomi of seedlings from non-infected and P. cinnamomi-infected trees. Acorns from Q. ilex trees were collected from five forests. After isolations were conducted in the rhizosphere of several trees, in each forest, three trees were selected as non-infected and three were selected as P. cinnamomi-infected. Forty acorns per tree were weighed and sown under greenhouse conditions, and when plants were aged ~9 months they were challenged with P. cinnamomi. Plant mortality was higher in the offspring of non-infected trees than in the offspring of P. cinnamomi-infected trees (26.2% vs. 21.1%, respectively). Consistently, survival probabilities of seedlings from P. cinnamomi-infected trees were higher than those of seedlings from non-infected trees, particularly in seedlings with reduced growth. Although acorns from healthy Q. ilex trees were heavier than acorns from P. cinnamomi-infected trees, the time to death of inoculated seedlings was not influenced by seed weight. The time to death of seedlings was positively related to belowground mass, particularly to an increased proportion of fine secondary roots. We report transgenerational-induced resistance to P. cinnamomi in Q. ilex triggered by an unknown mechanism independent of acorn mass. Information about the persistence of transgenerational effects in Q. ilex offspring and the influence of these effects on plant fitness is crucial to improve the management and regeneration of this declining species.
Collapse
|
14
|
Eckert S, Herden J, Stift M, Joshi J, van Kleunen M. Manipulation of cytosine methylation does not remove latitudinal clines in two invasive goldenrod species in Central Europe. Mol Ecol 2020; 30:222-236. [PMID: 33150604 DOI: 10.1111/mec.15722] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/10/2019] [Revised: 10/03/2020] [Accepted: 10/23/2020] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
Invasive species frequently differentiate phenotypically in novel environments within a few generations, often even with limited genetic variation. For the invasive plants Solidago canadensis and S. gigantea, we tested whether such differentiation might have occurred through heritable epigenetic changes in cytosine methylation. In a 2-year common-garden experiment, we grew plants from seeds collected along a latitudinal gradient in their non-native Central European range to test for trait differentiation and whether differentiation disappeared when seeds were treated with the demethylation agent zebularine. Microsatellite markers revealed no population structure along the latitudinal gradient in S. canadensis, but three genetic clusters in S. gigantea. Solidago canadensis showed latitudinal clines in flowering phenology and growth. In S. gigantea, the number of clonal offspring decreased with latitude. Although zebularine had a significant effect on early growth, probably through effects on cytosine methylation, latitudinal clines remained (or even got stronger) in plants raised from seeds treated with zebularine. Thus, our experiment provides no evidence that epigenetic mechanisms by selective cytosine methylation contribute to the observed phenotypic differentiation in invasive goldenrods in Central Europe.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Silvia Eckert
- Biodiversity Research/Systematic Botany, Institute of Biochemistry and Biology, University of Potsdam, Potsdam, Germany
| | - Jasmin Herden
- Ecology, Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany
| | - Marc Stift
- Ecology, Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany
| | - Jasmin Joshi
- Biodiversity Research/Systematic Botany, Institute of Biochemistry and Biology, University of Potsdam, Potsdam, Germany.,Institute for Landscape and Open Space, Eastern Switzerland University of Applied Sciences, Rapperswil, Switzerland.,Berlin-Brandenburg Institute of Advanced Biodiversity Research (BBIB), Berlin, Germany
| | - Mark van Kleunen
- Ecology, Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany.,Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation, Taizhou University, Taizhou, China
| |
Collapse
|
15
|
Adrian-Kalchhauser I, Sultan SE, Shama LNS, Spence-Jones H, Tiso S, Keller Valsecchi CI, Weissing FJ. Understanding 'Non-genetic' Inheritance: Insights from Molecular-Evolutionary Crosstalk. Trends Ecol Evol 2020; 35:1078-1089. [PMID: 33036806 DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2020.08.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/06/2020] [Revised: 08/17/2020] [Accepted: 08/20/2020] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
Understanding the evolutionary and ecological roles of 'non-genetic' inheritance (NGI) is daunting due to the complexity and diversity of epigenetic mechanisms. We draw on insights from molecular and evolutionary biology perspectives to identify three general features of 'non-genetic' inheritance systems: (i) they are functionally interdependent with, rather than separate from, DNA sequence; (ii) precise mechanisms vary phylogenetically and operationally; and (iii) epigenetic elements are probabilistic, interactive regulatory factors and not deterministic 'epialleles' with defined genomic locations and effects. We discuss each of these features and offer recommendations for future empirical and theoretical research that implements a unifying inherited gene regulation (IGR) approach to studies of 'non-genetic' inheritance.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Irene Adrian-Kalchhauser
- Centre for Fish and Wildlife Health, Department for Infectious Diseases and Pathobiology, Vetsuisse Faculty, University of Bern, Länggassstrasse 122, 3012 Bern, Switzerland.
| | - Sonia E Sultan
- Biology Department, Wesleyan University, Middletown, CT 06459, USA
| | - Lisa N S Shama
- Coastal Ecology Section, Alfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research, Wadden Sea Station Sylt, Hafenstrasse 43, 25992 List, Germany
| | - Helen Spence-Jones
- Centre for Biological Diversity, School of Biology, University of St Andrews, St. Andrews, UK
| | - Stefano Tiso
- Institute of Molecular Biology (IMB), Ackermannweg 4, 55128 Mainz, Germany
| | | | - Franz J Weissing
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Nijenborgh 7, 9747, AG, Groningen, The Netherlands
| |
Collapse
|
16
|
Alvarez M, Bleich A, Donohue K. Genotypic variation in the persistence of transgenerational responses to seasonal cues. Evolution 2020; 74:2265-2280. [PMID: 32383475 DOI: 10.1111/evo.13996] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2019] [Revised: 04/09/2020] [Accepted: 04/26/2020] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
Phenotypes respond to environments experienced directly by an individual, via phenotypic plasticity, or to the environment experienced by ancestors, via transgenerational environmental effects. The adaptive value of environmental effects depends not only on the strength and direction of the induced response but also on how long the response persists within and across generations, and how stably it is expressed across environments that are encountered subsequently. Little is known about the genetic basis of those distinct components, or even whether they exhibit genetic variation. We tested for genetic differences in the inducibility, temporal persistence, and environmental stability of transgenerational environmental effects in Arabidopsis thaliana. Genetic variation existed in the inducibility of transgenerational effects on traits expressed across the life cycle. Surprisingly, the persistence of transgenerational effects into the third generation was uncorrelated with their induction in the second generation. Although environmental effects for some traits in some genotypes weakened over successive generations, others were stronger or even in the opposite direction in more distant generations. Therefore, transgenerational effects in more distant generations are not merely caused by the retention or dissipation of those expressed in prior generations, but they may be genetically independent traits with the potential to evolve independently.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Mariano Alvarez
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, 27708
| | - Andrew Bleich
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, 27708
| | - Kathleen Donohue
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, 27708
| |
Collapse
|
17
|
Baker BH, Sultan SE, Lopez-Ichikawa M, Waterman R. Transgenerational effects of parental light environment on progeny competitive performance and lifetime fitness. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2020; 374:20180182. [PMID: 30966959 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2018.0182] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Plant and animal parents may respond to environmental conditions such as resource stress by altering traits of their offspring via heritable non-genetic effects. While such transgenerational plasticity can result in progeny phenotypes that are functionally pre-adapted to the inducing environment, it is unclear whether such parental effects measurably enhance the adult competitive success and lifetime reproductive output of progeny, and whether they may also adversely affect fitness if offspring encounter contrasting conditions. In glasshouse experiments with inbred genotypes of the annual plant Polygonum persicaria, we tested the effects of parental shade versus sun on (a) competitive performance of progeny in shade, and (b) lifetime reproductive fitness of progeny in three contrasting treatments. Shaded parents produced offspring with increased fitness in shade despite competition, as well as greater competitive impact on plant neighbours. Inherited effects of parental light conditions also significantly altered lifetime fitness: parental shade increased reproductive output for progeny in neighbour and understorey shade, but decreased fitness for progeny in sunny, dry conditions. Along with these substantial adaptive and maladaptive transgenerational effects, results show complex interactions between genotypes, parent environment and progeny conditions that underscore the role of environmental variability and change in shaping future adaptive potential. This article is part of the theme issue 'The role of plasticity in phenotypic adaptation to rapid environmental change'.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Brennan H Baker
- Biology Department, Wesleyan University , Middletown, CT 06459 , USA
| | - Sonia E Sultan
- Biology Department, Wesleyan University , Middletown, CT 06459 , USA
| | | | - Robin Waterman
- Biology Department, Wesleyan University , Middletown, CT 06459 , USA
| |
Collapse
|
18
|
Dong BC, Meng J, Yu FH. Effects of parental light environment on growth and morphological responses of clonal offspring. PLANT BIOLOGY (STUTTGART, GERMANY) 2019; 21:1083-1089. [PMID: 31054216 DOI: 10.1111/plb.13001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2019] [Accepted: 04/28/2019] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
Environments experienced by parent ramets of clonal plants can potentially influence fitness of clonal offspring ramets. Such clonal parental effects may result from heritable epigenetic changes, such as DNA methylation, which can be removed by application of DNA de-methylation agents such as 5-azacytidine. To test whether parental shading effects occur via clonal generation and whether DNA methylation plays a role in such effects, parent plants of the clonal herb Alternanthera philoxeroides were first subjected to two levels of light intensity (high versus low) crossed with two levels of DNA de-methylation (no or with de-methylation by application of 5-azacytidine), and then clonal offspring taken from each of these four types of parent plant were subjected to the same two light levels. Parental shading effects transmitted via clonal generation decreased growth and modified morphology of clonal offspring. Offspring responses were also influenced by DNA methylation level of parent plants. For clonal offspring growing under low light, parental shading effects on growth and morphology were always negative, irrespective of the parental de-methylation treatment. For clonal offspring growing under high light, parental shading effects on offspring growth and morphology were negative when the parents were not treated with 5-azacytidine, but neutral when they were treated with 5-azacytidine. Overall, parental shading effects on clonal offspring performance of A. philoxeroides were found, and DNA methylation is likely to be involved in such effects. However, parental shading effects contributed little to the tolerance of clonal offspring to shading.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- B-C Dong
- School of Nature Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing, China
| | - J Meng
- School of Nature Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing, China
| | - F-H Yu
- School of Nature Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing, China
- Institute of Wetland Ecology & Clone Ecology/Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation, Taizhou University, Taizhou, China
| |
Collapse
|
19
|
Liberman N, Wang SY, Greer EL. Transgenerational epigenetic inheritance: from phenomena to molecular mechanisms. Curr Opin Neurobiol 2019; 59:189-206. [PMID: 31634674 DOI: 10.1016/j.conb.2019.09.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/13/2019] [Accepted: 09/11/2019] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Inherited information not encoded in the DNA sequence can regulate a variety of complex phenotypes. However, how this epigenetic information escapes the typical epigenetic erasure that occurs upon fertilization and how it regulates behavior is still unclear. Here we review recent examples of brain related transgenerational epigenetic inheritance and delineate potential molecular mechanisms that could regulate how non-genetic information could be transmitted.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Noa Liberman
- Division of Newborn Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, 300 Longwood Avenue, Boston, MA 02115, USA; Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston MA 02115, USA
| | - Simon Yuan Wang
- Division of Newborn Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, 300 Longwood Avenue, Boston, MA 02115, USA; Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston MA 02115, USA
| | - Eric Lieberman Greer
- Division of Newborn Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, 300 Longwood Avenue, Boston, MA 02115, USA; Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston MA 02115, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
20
|
Herrera CM, Medrano M, Pérez R, Bazaga P, Alonso C. Within-plant heterogeneity in fecundity and herbivory induced by localized DNA hypomethylation in the perennial herb Helleborus foetidus. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF BOTANY 2019; 106:798-806. [PMID: 31157419 DOI: 10.1002/ajb2.1291] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2018] [Accepted: 03/26/2019] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
PREMISE Phenotypic heterogeneity of reiterated, homologous structures produced by individual plants has ecological consequences for plants and their animal consumers. This paper examines experimentally the epigenetic mosaicism hypothesis, which postulates that within-plant variation in traits of reiterated structures may partly arise from different parts of the same genetic individual differing in patterns or extent of genomic DNA methylation. METHODS Leaves of paired ramets borne by field-growing Helleborus foetidus plants were infiltrated periodically over the entire flowering period with either a water solution of the demethylating agent zebularine or just water as the control. The effects of the zebularine treatment were assessed by quantifying genome-wide DNA cytosine methylation in leaves and monitoring inflorescence growth and flower production, number of ovules per flower, pollination success, fruit set, seed set, seed size, and distribution of sap-feeding insects. RESULTS Genomic DNA from leaves in zebularine-treated ramets was significantly less methylated than DNA from leaves in control ones. Inflorescences in treated ramets grew smaller and produced fewer flowers, with fewer ovules and lower follicle and seed set, but did not differ from inflorescences in untreated ramets in pollination success or seed size. The zebularine treatment influenced the within-plant distribution of sap-feeding insects. CONCLUSIONS Experimental manipulation of genomic DNA methylation level in leaves of wild-growing H. foetidus plants induced considerable within-plant heterogeneity in phenotypic (inflorescences, flowers, fecundity) and ecologically relevant traits (herbivore distribution), which supports the hypothesis that epigenetic mosaicism may partly account for within-plant variation.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Carlos M Herrera
- Estación Biológica de Doñana, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Avenida Américo Vespucio 26, 41092, Sevilla, Spain
| | - Mónica Medrano
- Estación Biológica de Doñana, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Avenida Américo Vespucio 26, 41092, Sevilla, Spain
| | - Ricardo Pérez
- Instituto de Investigaciones Químicas, Centro de Investigaciones Científicas Isla de La Cartuja, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC)-Universidad de Sevilla, Sevilla, Spain
| | - Pilar Bazaga
- Estación Biológica de Doñana, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Avenida Américo Vespucio 26, 41092, Sevilla, Spain
| | - Conchita Alonso
- Estación Biológica de Doñana, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Avenida Américo Vespucio 26, 41092, Sevilla, Spain
| |
Collapse
|