Book Section

Epigenetics and phenotypic plasticity in animals

Vogt, G.

Record Number:
6003
Year:
2022
Pages:
35-108
Editor:
Vaschetto, L.M.
Publisher:
Springer
PMCID:
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-13771-6_3
Book Title:
Epigenetics, development, ecology and evolution
Abstract:
AbstractPhenotypicplasticitysensulato,thegenerationofdifferentphenotypesfromthesamegenome,iscausedbydevelopmentalprogrammes,developmentalstochasticityandenvironmentalimpacts.ThesetriggerscanevokechangesofDNAmethylationandhistonemodificationmarksonthechromatinandofnon-codingRNApathwaysthatregulateDNAexpression,leadingfinallytotheproductionofdifferentphenotypesfromthesameDNAsequence.ThepowerofepigeneticmechanismsinshapingofphenotypesismostimpressivelydemonstratedbythestructurallyandfunctionallydifferentcelltypesinthebodyofmulticellularanimalsandthephenotypicallyverydifferentlifestagesofholometabolousinsectsthatareproducedfromthesingleDNAofthezygote.However,epigeneticmechanismscanalsohelpgeneratingsubstantialphenotypicvariationinpopulations,asrevealedbyexperimentswithclonalanimals.Thisphenotypicvariationiscausedbybed-hedgingdevelopmentalstochasticityanddirectionalenvironmentalinduction,whichusuallyacttogetherbutindifferentweighing,dependingontheenvironment.Thegenerationofepigeneticallymediatedphenotypicplasticityisobviouslyeffec-tiveinallanimalpopulations,butisparticularlyimportantforclonalandgeneticallyimpoverishedpopulationshelpingthemtosurvivewhentheenvironmentalcondi-tionschange.Italsohelpsinvasivegroups,sessiletaxaandpopulationsinextremehabitatstoadapttotheirparticularlychallengingenvironments.Epigeneticmecha-nismsareevolutionarilyrelevantaswell.Theywereshowntotriggertraitalterationinearlydomesticationandconsolidatespeciationbycontributingtoreproductiveisolation,chromatinremodellingandalterationofgeneexpression.Someepigenet-icallymediatedphenotypescanbeinheritedtothenextgenerations,particularlyiftheyprovideadvantagesinchangingornewenvironments.Underlong-lastingfavourableconditions,theymaybegeneticallyintegrated,startingnewevolutionarytrajectories.Becauseepigeneticchangescaneitherbetheconsequenceofgeneticchangesortriggergeneticchanges,dependingoncontext,theycanbebothfollowersandleadersinanimalevolution. KeywordsDevelopment·Domestication·Environmentaladaptation·Epigeneticvariation·Evolution·Phenotypicplasticity·Speciation
Times Cited:
1
Relevent Species:
Astyanax jordani (Hubbs and Innes 1936) Buckup 2003