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Data for: Tube feet regeneration and plasticity in the purple sea urchin (Strongylocentrotus purpuratus)

Sea urchins are key members of hydrodynamically intense habitats, such as open coast intertidal and shallow reefs. Secure attachment to the substrata, by means of tube feet and spines, is essential for survival. Previous studies suggest that environmental variables (i.e. hydrodynamics, substrate) can influence the morphology and adhesive performance of tube feet. Catastrophic failure of tube feet occurs often due to strong hydrodynamic forces. The time and ability of amputated tube feet to return to pre-amputation adhesive performance, and the interaction with environmental factors are unknown. To assess the dynamics of adhesive performance and re- generation of tube feet, we 1) evaluated phenotypic plasticity of disc surface area of two urchin populations inhabiting sites with different lithologies (field - in-situ conditions) and, 2) assessed regeneration of their functionality (tube foot length, time of disc first appearance, disc surface area, and tenacity) after amputation (laboratory - ex-situ conditions). Results showed that in the field, tube feet are plastic in their phenotype: sea urchins from the two sites differed in their disc surface area. Plasticity was also observed in the laboratory, where urchins regenerate tube feet that are shorter in length and have smaller discs compared to pre-amputation measurements. Thus, sea urchin tube feet recovering from amputation events in the intertidal may differ in their initial morphology and in the recovery period after amputation. Moreover, tube feet that were never amputated also decreased their disc area, suggesting that plasticity occurs on tube feet of urchins maintained in laboratory conditions. In shallow temperate reef systems, urchins are ecosystem engineers that affect the abundance and distribution of many other organisms. The plastic nature of morphological and adhesive abilities of sea urchin tube feet influences their ability to survive and dominate wave-battered habitats.

Rapid differentiation of plasticity in life history and morphology during invasive range expansion and concurrent local adaptation in the horned beetle Onthophagus taurus

Understanding the interplay between genetic differentiation, ancestral plasticity, and the evolution of plasticity during adaptation to environmental variation is critical to predict populations' responses to environmental change. However, the role of plasticity in rapid adaptation in nature remains poorly understood. We here use the invasion of the horned beetle Onthophagus taurus in the United States during the last half century to study the contribution of ancestral plasticity and post-invasion evolution of plastic responses in rapid population differentiation. We document latitudinal variation in life history and morphology, including genetic compensation in development time and body size, likely adaptive responses to seasonal constraints in the North. However, clinal variation in development time and size was strongly dependent on rearing temperature, suggesting that population differentiation in plasticity played a critical role in successful adaptation on ecological timescales. Clinal variation in wing shape was independent of ancestral plasticity, but correlated with derived plasticity, consistent with evolutionary interdependence. In contrast, clinal variation in tibia shape aligned poorly with thermal plasticity. Overall, this study suggests that post-invasion evolution of plasticity contributed to range expansions and concurrent adaptation to novel climatic conditions.

Data from: Staying ahead of the game –plasticity in chorusing behavior allows males to remain attractive in different social environments

The dynamic nature of many breeding aggregations, where the composition and attractiveness of a male's competitors is ever changing, places extreme pressure on advertising males to remain competitive. In response to this challenge, males may adjust the properties of their calls, or change when they signal relative to their nearest neighbors, which are likely their strongest competitors. We used two playback experiments - one simulating a conspecific environment and the other simulating a mixed-species environment - to test the hypothesis that males use social plasticity in signal features, signal timing, or both, to remain attractive. Further, we examined whether this plasticity is mediated by selective attention, through which males change calling behavior in response to the most relevant competitors, while disregarding less relevant rivals. We find that males change some temporal call features, but rely strongly on signal timing to remain attractive relative to rivals. Simultaneous assessment of both types of calling plasticity allowed us to makes sense of counterintuitive responses of male calling behavior that would otherwise appear non-adaptive. We further show that this plasticity is most pronounced in response to attractive/conspecific males. We discuss how sexual selection by female choice may influence the trade-off between call feature and call timing plasticity, as well as how competitive interactions on a local scale may affect the overall acoustic environment in the chorus.

Data from: Female sperm storage mediates postcopulatory costs and benefits of ejaculate anticipatory plasticity in the guppy

Males of many species evolved the capability of adjusting their ejaculate phenotype in response to social cues to match the expected mating conditions. When females store sperm for prolonged time, the expected fitness return of plastic adjustments of ejaculate phenotype may depend on the interval between mating and fertilization. While, prolonged female sperm storage (FSS) increases the opportunity for sperm competition, as a consequence of the longer temporal overlapping of ejaculates from several males, it may also create variable selective forces on ejaculate phenotype, for example by exposing trade-offs between sperm velocity and sperm survival. We evaluated the relationship between the plasticity of ejaculate quality and FSS in the guppy, Poecilia reticulata, a polyandrous livebearing fish in which females store sperm for several months and where stored sperm contribute significantly to a male's lifelong reproductive success. In this species, males respond to the perception of future mating opportunities by increasing the quantity (number) and quality (swimming velocity) of ready-to-use sperm (an anticipatory response called 'sperm priming'). Here we investigated 1) the effect of sperm priming on in-vitro sperm viability at stripping and its temporal decline (as estimate of sperm survival), and, 2) the in-vitro competitive fertilization success in relation to female sperm storage using artificial insemination. As expected, sperm-primed males produced more numerous and faster sperm, but with a reduced in-vitro sperm viability at stripping and after 4 hours, compared to their counterparts. Artificial insemination revealed that the small (non-significant) advantage of primed sperm when fertilization immediately follows insemination, is reversed when eggs are fertilized by female-stored sperm, weeks after insemination. By suggesting a plastic trade-off between sperm velocity and viability, these results demonstrate that prolonged female sperm storage generates divergent selection pressures on ejaculate phenotype.

opencc-zeroApr 2020View details →

Contribution of genetic versus plastic responses to adaptive patterns in a widespread butterfly along a latitudinal cline

Understanding how organisms adapt to complex environments is a central goal of evolutionary biology and ecology. This issue is of special interest in the current era of rapidly changing climatic conditions. Here, we investigate clinal variation and plastic responses in life history, morphology, and physiology in the butterfly Pieris napi along a pan-European gradient by exposing butterflies raised in captivity to different temperatures. We found clinal variation in body size, growth rates and concomitant development time, wing aspect ratio, wing melanisation, and heat tolerance. Individuals from warmer environments were more heat-tolerant, had less melanised wings and a shorter development but still they were larger than individuals from cooler environments. These findings suggest selection for rapid growth in the warmth and for wing melanisation in the cold, and thus fine-tuned genetic adaptation to local climates. Irrespective of the origin of butterflies, the effects of higher developmental temperature were largely as expected, speeding up development, reducing body size, potential metabolic activity, and wing melanisation, while increasing heat tolerance. At least in part, these patterns likely reflect adaptive phenotypic plasticity. In summary, our study revealed pronounced plastic and genetic responses, which may indicate high adaptive capacities in our study organism. Whether this may help such species though to deal with current climate change needs further investigation, as clinal patterns have typically evolved over long periods.

Sex-specific transgenerational plasticity II: Grandpaternal effects are lineage- and sex-specific in threespined sticklebacks

1. Transgenerational plasticity (TGP) occurs when the environment encountered by one generation (F0) alters the phenotypes of one or more future generations (e.g. F1 and F2). Sex selective TGP, via specific lineages or to only male or female descendants, has been underexplored in natural systems, and may be adaptive if it allows past generations to fine-tune the phenotypes of future generations in response to sex-specific life history strategies. 2. We sought to understand if exposing males to predation risk can influence grandoffspring via sperm in threespined stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus). We specifically tested the hypothesis that grandparental effects are transmitted in a sex-specific way down the male lineage, from paternal grandfathers to F2 males. 3. We reared F1 offspring of unexposed and predator-exposed F0 males under 'control' conditions and used them to generate F2s with control grandfathers, a predator-exposed maternal grandfather (i.e., predator-exposed F0 males to F1 daughters to F2 offspring), a predator-exposed paternal grandfather (i.e., predator-exposed F0 males to F1 sons to F2 offspring), or two predator-exposed grandfathers. We then assayed male and female F2s for a variety of traits related to antipredator defense. 4. We found little evidence that transgenerational effects were mediated to only male descendants via the paternal lineage. Instead, grandpaternal effects depended on lineage and were mediated largely across sexes, from F1 males to F2 females and from F1 females to F2 males. When their paternal grandfather was exposed to predation risk, female F2s were heavier and showed a reduced change in behavior in response to a simulated predator attack relative to offspring of control, unexposed grandparents. In contrast, male F2s showed reduced antipredator behavior when their maternal grandfather was exposed to predation risk. However, these patterns were only evident when one grandfather, but not both grandfathers, was exposed to predation risk, suggesting the potential for non-additive interactions across lineages. 5. If sex-specific and lineage effects are common, then grandparental effects are likely underestimated in the literature. These results draw attention to the importance of sex-selective inheritance of environmental effects and raise new questions about the proximate and ultimate causes of selective transmission across generations.

Data from: Evolutionary and plastic phenotypic change can be just as fast as changes in population densities

Evolution and plasticity can drive population-level phenotypic change (e.g., changes in the mean phenotype) on time scales comparable to changes in population densities. However, it is unclear if phenotypic change has the potential to be just as fast as changes in densities, or if comparable rates of change only occur when densities are changing slow enough for phenotypes to keep pace. Moreover, it is unclear if this depends on the mode of adaptation. Using scaling theory and fast-slow dynamical systems theory, we develop a method for comparing maximum rates of density and phenotypic change estimated from population-level time series data. We apply our method to 30 published empirical studies where changes in morphological traits are caused by evolution, plasticity, or an unknown combination. For every study, the maximum rate of phenotypic change was 0.5 to 2.5 times faster than the maximum rate of change in density. Moreover, there were no systematic differences between systems with different modes of adaptation. Our results show that plasticity and evolution can drive phenotypic change just as fast as changes in densities. We discuss the implications of our results in terms of the strengths of feedbacks between population densities and traits.

Raw data for: Plastic male mating behaviour evolves in response to the competitive environment

Male reproductive phenotypes can evolve in response to the social and sexual environment. The expression of many such phenotypes may also be plastic within an individual's lifetime. For example, male Drosophila melanogaster show significantly extended mating duration following a period of exposure to conspecific male rivals. The costs and benefits of reproductive investment, and plasticity itself, can be shaped by the prevailing socio-sexual environment and by resource availability. We investigated these ideas using experimental evolution lines of D. melanogaster evolving under three fixed sex ratios (high, medium and low male-male competition) on either rich or poor adult diets. We found that males evolving in high-competition environments evolved longer mating durations overall. In addition, these males expressed a novel type of plastic behavioural response following exposure to rival males: they both significantly reduced and showed altered courtship delivery and exhibited significantly longer mating latencies. Plasticity in male mating duration in response to rivals was maintained in all of the lines, suggesting that the costs of plasticity were minimal. None of the evolutionary responses tested were consistently affected by dietary resource regimes. Collectively, the results show that fixed behavioural changes and new augmentations to the repertoire of reproductive behaviours can evolve rapidly.

opencc-zeroJun 2019View details →

Data from: Gene expression in the phenotypically plastic Arctic charr (Salvelinus alpinus): a focus on growth and ossification at early stages of development

Gene expression during development shapes the phenotypes of individuals. Although embryonic gene expression can have lasting effects on developmental trajectories, few studies consider the role of maternal effects, such as egg size, on gene expression. Using qPCR, we characterize relative expression of 14 growth and/or skeletal promoting genes across embryonic development in Arctic charr (Salvelinus alpinus). We test to what extent their relative expression is correlated with egg size and size at early life‐stages within the study population. We predict smaller individuals to have higher expression of growth and skeletal promoting genes, due to less maternal resources (i.e., yolk) and prioritization of energy toward ossification. We found expression levels to vary across developmental stages and only three genes (Mmp9, Star, and Sgk1) correlated with individual size at a given developmental stage. Contrary to our hypothesis, expression of Mmp9 and Star showed a non‐linear relationship with size (at post fertilization and hatching, respectively), whilst Sgk1 was higher in larger embryos at hatching. Interestingly, these genes are also associated with craniofacial divergence of Arctic charr morphs. Our results indicate that early life‐stage variation in gene expression, concomitant to maternal effects, can influence developmental plasticity and potentially the evolution of resource polymorphism in fishes.

Data from: Early-life conditions determine the between-individual heterogeneity in plasticity of calving date in reindeer

1. Phenotypic plasticity has become a key-concept to enhance our ability to understand the adaptive potential of species to track the pace of climate change by allowing a relatively rapid adjustment of life history traits. 2. Recently, population-level trends of an earlier timing of reproduction to climate change have been highlighted in many taxa but only few studies have explicitly taken into consideration between-individual heterogeneity in phenotypic plasticity. 3. Using a long-term data of a semi-domesticated reindeer (Rangifer tarandus) population, we demonstrated that females differed greatly in their mean calving date but only slightly in the magnitude of their plastic response to the amount of precipitation in April. We also showed that despite the absence of a population trend, females individually responded to the amount of precipitation in April by delaying their calving dates. 4. Females' calving date under average climatic conditions was best predicted by their birthdate, their physical condition in March-April-May before their first calving season and by their first calving date. The degree of their phenotypic plasticity was not dependent on any of the females' attributes early in life tested in this study. However, females who delayed their calving dates in response to a higher amount of precipitation in April slightly produced less calves over their reproductive life. 5. These findings confirmed that early life conditions of female reindeer can shape their phenotypic value during reproductive life, supporting the importance of maternal effects in shaping individuals' lifetime reproductive success. Whether females differed in the magnitude of their plastic response to climatic changes has received contrasted responses for various ungulate species. This calls for more research to enhance our understanding of the underlying mechanisms leading to the complexity of plastic responses among populations to cope with current climate change.

A multidimensional approach to the expression of phenotypic plasticity

Phenotypic plasticity is increasingly recognized as a key element of eco-evolutionary dynamics, but it remains challenging to assess because of its multidimensional nature. Indeed, organisms live in complex environments where numerous factors can impact the phenotypic expression of traits (inter-environment axis), possess multiple traits that can influence each other's expression (inter-trait axis), and differ in their genetic background (inter-genotype axis), which can not only impact the traits' values but also their plasticity. We addressed six questions related to phenotypic plasticity: (1) do different environmental gradients show similar effects on a given trait? (2) Are the effects of two environmental gradients on a trait additive? (3) Do different traits show similar plastic response to a given environmental gradient? (4) Do the (co)variances between traits vary across environmental gradients? (5) Do genotypes differ in their plastic response to a given environmental gradient? (6) Are some genotypes more plastic than others across all traits? We designed a microcosm experiment using the protist Tetrahymena thermophila aimed at encompassing all these aspects of phenotypic plasticity. We exposed 15 distinct genotypes to 25 combinations of temperature and nutrient availability and assessed the plasticity of five phenotypic traits. Our results show strong differences in the plastic response depending on the environmental gradient, not only regarding the shape of the reaction norm of the different traits tested, but also in the overall plasticity of the organisms. We did not find any covariance between traits that was consistent across all environments. Overall, our results suggest independent impacts of the environmental dimension considered on the observed plastic response. These results underline potential difficulties in generalising findings about plasticity to all environments and all traits.

DNA methylation and phenotypic data from: Environmentally induced phenotypic plasticity and DNA methylation changes in a wild potato growing in two contrasting Andean experimental gardens

DNA methylation can be environmentally modulated and play a role in phenotypic plasticity. To understand the role of environmentally induced epigenetic variation and its dynamics in natural populations and ecosystems, it is relevant to place studies in a real-world context. Our experimental model is the wild potato Solanum kurtzianum, a close relative of the cultivated potato S. tuberosum. It was evaluated in its natural habitat, an arid Andean region in Argentina characterised by spatial and temporal environmental fluctuations. The dynamics of phenotypic and epigenetic variability (with Methyl Sensitive Amplified Polymorphism markers, MSAP) was assayed in three genotypes across three growing seasons. These genotypes were cultivated permanently and also reciprocally transplanted between experimental gardens (EG) differing in ca. 1000 m of altitude. In two seasons, the genotypes presented differential methylation patterns associated to the EG. In the reciprocal transplants, a rapid epigenomic remodelling occurred according to the growing season. Phenotypic plasticity, both spatial (between EGs within season) and temporal (between seasons), was detected. The epigenetic and phenotypic variability were positively correlated. The lack of an evident mitotic epigenetic memory would be a common response to short-term environmental fluctuations. Thus, the environmentally induced phenotypic and epigenetic variation could contribute to populations persistence through time. These results have implications for understanding the great ecological diversity of wild potatoes.

opencc-zeroSep 2020View details →

Data from: Phenotypically plastic responses to predation risk are temperature dependent

Predicting how organisms respond to climate change requires that we understand the temperature dependence of fitness in relevant ecological contexts (e.g., with or without predation risk). Predation risk often induces changes to life history traits that are themselves temperature dependent. We explore how perceived predation risk and temperature interact to determine fitness (indicated by the intrinsic rate of increase, r) through changes to its underlying components (net reproductive rate, generation time, and survival) in Daphnia magna. We exposed Daphnia to predation cues from dragonfly naiads early, late, or throughout their ontogeny. Predation risk increased r differentially across temperatures and depending on the timing of exposure to predation cues. The timing of predation risk likewise altered the temperature dependent response of T and R0. Daphnia at hotter temperatures responded to predation risk by increasing r through a combination of increased R0 and decreased T that together countered an increase in mortality rate. However, only D. magna that experienced predation cues early in ontogeny showed elevated r at colder temperatures. These results highlight the fact that phenotypically plastic responses of life history traits to predation risk can be strongly temperature dependent.

opencc-zeroSep 2020View details →

Data from: Rapid evolution and plasticity of genitalia

Genital morphology exhibits tremendous variation and is intimately linked with fitness. Sexual selection, nonmating natural selection, and neutral forces have been explored as potential drivers of genital divergence. Though less explored, genitalia may also be plastic in response to the developmental environment. In poeciliid fishes, the length of the male intromittent organ, the gonopodium, may be driven by sexual selection if longer gonopodia attract females or aid in forced copulation attempts, or by nonmating natural selection if shorter gonopodia allow predator evasion. The rearing environment may also affect gonopodium development. Using an experimental introduction of Trinidadian guppies into four replicate streams with reduced predation risk, we tested whether this new environment caused the evolution of genitalia. We measured gonopodium length after rearing the source and introduced populations for two generations in the laboratory to remove maternal and other environmental effects. We split full-sibling brothers into different rearing treatments to additionally test for developmental plasticity of gonopodia in response to predator cues and food levels as well as the evolution of plasticity. The introduced populations had shorter gonopodia after accounting for body size, demonstrating rapid genital evolution in 2-3 years (8-12 generations). Brothers reared on low food levels had longer gonopodia relative to body size than those on high food, reflecting maintenance of gonopodium length despite a reduction in body size. In contrast, gonopodium length was not significantly different in response to the presence or absence of predator cues. Because the plastic response to low food was maintained between the source and introduced populations, there was no evidence that plasticity evolved. This study demonstrates the importance of both evolution and developmental plasticity in explaining genital variation.

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Raw data for "Are bioplastics and plant-based materials safer than conventional plastics? In vitro toxicity and chemical composition"

This upload contains the raw data files from FTIR analysis (csv format) and the non-target chemical analysis (UPLC-QTOF-MS/MS, positive ionization, MSE acquisition, Waters raw format) associated with our publication "Are bioplastics and plant-based materials safer than conventional plastics? In vitro toxicity and chemical composition" published in Environment International (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envint.2020.106066). You will find all methodological details there.

opencc-by-4.0Aug 2020View details →

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data set related to article Preservation of Visual Cortex Plasticity in Retinitis Pigmentosa

This record contains raw data related to article Preservation of Visual Cortex Plasticity in Retinitis Pigmentosa

opencc-by-4.0Sep 2020View details →

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Modelling plastic concentrations in sea ice and the water column

Results for the last year of a 50-year simulation of the dispersion of plastics in the global ocean using the NEMO modelling framework in configuration ORCA1-LIM2. These are NetCDF. Variable names are largely self-explanatory. PLASTIC_1 to PLASTIC_3 refer to buoyant, neutrally boyant and non-buoyant plastic concentrations in water; plt1 to plt3 are the corresponding concentrations in sea ice. Data for years 1-to-49 will be made available by the authors upon request.

opencc-by-4.0Sep 2020View details →

opencc-zeroSep 2020View details →

Data from: Factors influencing plasticity in the arrival-breeding interval in a migratory species reacting to climate change

Climate change is profoundly affecting the phenology of many species. In migratory birds, there is evidence for advances in their arrival time at the breeding ground and their timing of breeding, yet empirical studies examining the interdependence between arrival and breeding time are lacking. Hence, evidence is scarce regarding how breeding time may be adjusted via the arrival-breeding interval to help local populations adapt to local conditions or climate change. We used long-term data from an intensively monitored population of the northern wheatear (Oenanthe oenanthe) to examine the factors related to the length of 734 separate arrival-to-breeding events from 549 individual females. From 1993 to 2017 the mean arrival and egg-laying dates advanced by approximately the same amount (~5-6 days), with considerable between-individual variation in the arrival-breeding interval. The arrival-breeding interval was shorter for: (1) individuals that arrived later in the season compared to early arriving birds, (2) for experienced females compared to first-year breeders, (3) as spring progressed, and (4) in later years compared to earlier ones. The influence of these factors was much larger for birds arriving earlier in the season compared to later arriving birds, with most effects on variation in the arrival-breeding interval being absent in late arriving birds. Thus, in this population it appears that the timing of breeding is not constrained by arrival for early- to mid-arriving birds, but instead is dependent on local conditions after arrival. For late arriving birds, however, the timing of breeding appears to be influenced by arrival constraints. Hence, impacts of climate change on arrival dates and local conditions are expected to vary for different parts of the population, with potential negative impacts associated with these factors likely to differ for early- versus late-arriving birds.

opencc-zeroOct 2020View details →

The impact of herbivory and pollination on the evolution of herbivore-induced plasticity

Theory predicts that herbivory should primarily determine the evolution of herbivore-induced plasticity in plant defenses, but little is known about the influence of other interactions like pollination. Pollinators may exert negative selection on the herbivore-induced plasticity of chemical defenses when floral signals and rewards are indirectly affected, provoking deterrent effects on these mutualists. We investigated the influence of constant herbivory and pollination on the evolved patterns and degree of herbivore-induced plasticity in chemical plant defenses and floral morphometry and volatiles in fast-cycling Brassica rapa plants. To do this, we used plants from an evolution experiment that had evolved under bee/hand pollination and herbivory manipulated in a 2*2 factorial design during six generations, producing four selection treatments. We grew sibling plant pairs from each of the four selection treatments of the last generation and infested one group with herbivores and left the other uninfested. Herbivore-induced plasticity was analyzed within and between selection treatments. We found support for the hypothesis that constant herbivory favors the evolution of higher constitutive yet lower herbivore-induced plasticity in defenses. However, this only occurred in plants that evolved under hand pollination and constant herbivory. Bee pollination had a strong influence on the evolution of herbivore-induced plasticity of all traits studied. Plants that evolved under bee pollination, with and without constant herbivory, showed remarkably similar patterns of herbivore-induced plasticity in their defense- and floral traits and had a higher number of plastic responses compared to plants of hand pollination. Such patterns support the hypothesis that bee pollination influenced the evolution of herbivore-induced plasticity, most likely via indirect effects, such as links between defense- and floral traits. We conclude that interactions other than herbivory, such as pollination, may impact herbivore-induced plasticity, through indirect effects and metabolic tradeoffs, when it contributes to trait evolution in plants.