Journal Article
Phenotypic plasticity as a mechanism of cave colonization and adaptation
Bilandžija H., Hollifield B., Steck M., Meng G., Ng M., Koch A. D, Gračan, R., Ćetković, H., Porter, M.L., Renner, K.J. and Jeffery, W.
Record Number:
4644
Year:
2020
Journal:
eLife
Volume:
9: e51830
Abstract:
Abstract A widely accepted model for the evolution of cave animals posits colonization by
surface ancestors followed by the acquisition of adaptations over many generations. However, the
speed of cave adaptation in some species suggests mechanisms operating over shorter timescales.
To address these mechanisms, we used Astyanax mexicanus, a teleost with ancestral surface
morphs (surface fish, SF) and derived cave morphs (cavefish, CF). We exposed SF to completely
dark conditions and identified numerous altered traits at both the gene expression and phenotypic
levels. Remarkably, most of these alterations mimicked CF phenotypes. Our results indicate that
many cave-related traits can appear within a single generation by phenotypic plasticity. In the next
generation, plasticity can be further refined. The initial plastic responses are random in adaptive
outcome but may determine the subsequent course of evolution. Our study suggests that
phenotypic plasticity contributes to the rapid evolution of cave-related traits in A. mexicanus.
Times Cited:
1
Relevent Species: