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133 results for “thermal plasticity”

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dryad40/100

Molecular mechanisms underlying plasticity in a thermally varying environment

Adaptation to environmental variability is a prerequisite for species' persistence in their natural environments. With climate change predicted to increase the frequency and severity of temperature fluctuations, ectothermic organisms may increasingly depend on acclimation capacity to accommodate thermal variability. To elucidate the molecular basis of fluctuating temperature induced phenotypic plasticity, we investigated heat tolerance and the mechanisms induced by acclimation to thermal variability as compared to those seen at constant temperature. We ran genome-wide transcriptomic analysis on Drosophila melanogaster subjected to acclimation at constant (19 ± 0°C) and fluctuating (19 ± 8°C) temperatures and contrasted the induction of molecular mechanisms in adult males, adult females, and larvae. We found life stage and sex specific dynamics of the acclimation responses to fluctuating temperatures. Adult flies exposed to temperature fluctuations showed a constitutive improvement in heat tolerance while heat tolerance of larvae tracked thermal fluctuations. A constitutive down-regulation of gene expression was observed for several genes in the case of larvae exposed to fluctuations. Our results for adult females showed that, for several genes, fluctuating temperature acclimation resulted in canalization of gene expression. Both transcriptional and post-transcriptional machinery were greatly affected by fluctuations in the case of adult males. Gene ontology analysis showed enrichment of heat stress response involving several major heat shock proteins in both larvae and adults exposed to fluctuating temperatures, even though fluctuations were in a benign range of temperatures. Finally, molecular mechanisms related to environmental sensing seem to be an important component of insect response to thermal variability.

opencc-zeroMar 2022View details →

dryad40/100

Data from: Evolved differences in thermal plasticity of mosquitofish mating behavior are unrelated to source temperature

Phenotypic plasticity in response to temperature is expected to play a key role in how organisms cope with climate change. Evolved differences in plastic responses are often linked to historical differences in average temperatures, yet we know little about how behavioral plasticity is affected by prevailing thermal environments. In this study, we used a common-garden design to test whether historical differences in average temperatures caused evolutionary divergence in the plasticity of mating behavior of Western mosquitofish (Gambusia affinis) inhabiting geothermal springs with average source temperatures spanning from 18.8 to 33.3 C. We found population differences in the thermal plasticity of courtship displays, copulation attempts, copulations, and mating efficiency, but these differences could not be explained by average source temperatures. We also tested for differences in thermal optima and maximum performance in mating behavior among populations. We found that only the maximum number of displays differed among populations, although these differences were also unrelated to source temperature. While temperature may have predictable evolutionary consequences for some thermally sensitive traits, our findings are inconsistent with theoretical predictions of evolutionary responses to divergent average temperatures, highlighting the need for greater synergy between empirical and theoretical work to understand thermal adaptation.

opencc-zeroJun 2022View details →

dryad40/100

Differential reproductive plasticity under thermal variability in a freshwater fish (Danio rerio)

Human-driven increases in global mean temperatures are associated with concomitant increases in thermal variability. Yet, few studies have explored the impacts of thermal variability on fitness-related traits, limiting our ability to predict how organisms will respond to dynamic thermal changes. Among the myriad organismal responses to thermal variability, one of the most proximate to fitness – and, thus, a population's ability to persist - is reproduction. Here, we examine how a model freshwater fish (Danio rerio) responds to diel thermal fluctuations that span the species' viable developmental range of temperatures. We specifically investigate reproductive performance metrics including spawning success, fecundity, egg provisioning, and sperm concentration. Notably, we apply thermal variability treatments during two ontogenetic timepoints to disentangle the relative effects of developmental plasticity and reversible acclimation. We found evidence of direct, negative effects of thermal variability during later ontogenetic stages on reproductive performance metrics. We also found complex interactive effects of early and late-life exposure to thermal variability, with evidence of beneficial acclimation of spawning success and modification of the relationship between fecundity and egg provisioning. Our findings illuminate the plastic life-history modifications that fish may undergo as their thermal environments become increasingly variable.

opencc-zeroJul 2022View details →

dryad40/100

Limited sex differences in plastic responses suggest evolutionary conservatism of thermal reaction norms: A meta-analysis in insects

Temperature has a profound effect on the growth and development of ectothermic animals. However, the extent to which ecologically-driven selection pressures can adjust thermal plastic responses in growth schedules is not well understood. Comparing temperature-induced plastic responses between sexes provides a promising but underexploited approach to evaluating the evolvability of thermal reaction norms: males and females share largely the same genes and immature environments but typically experience different ecological selection pressures. We proceed from the idea that substantial sex differences in plastic responses could be interpreted as resulting from sex-specific life-history optimization, whereas similarity among the sexes should rather be seen as evidence of an essential role of physiological constraints. In this study, we performed a meta-analysis of sex-specific thermal responses in insect development times, using data on 161 species with comprehensive phylogenetic and ecological coverage. As a reference for judging the magnitude of sex-specificity in thermal plasticity, we compared the magnitude of sex differences in plastic responses to temperature with those in response to diet. We show that sex-specific responses of development times to temperature variation are broadly similar. We also found no strong evidence for sex-specificity in thermal responses to depend on the magnitude or direction of sex differences in development time. Sex differences in temperature-induced plastic responses were systematically less pronounced than sex differences in responses induced by variations in larval diet. Our results point to the existence of substantial constraints on the evolvability of thermal reaction norms in insects as the most likely explanation. If confirmed, the low evolvability of thermal response is an essential aspect to consider in predicting evolutionary responses to climate warming.

opencc-zeroOct 2022View details →

dryad40/100

Data from: Higher thermal plasticity in flowering phenology increases flowering output

Ongoing climate change poses an increasing threat to biodiversity. To avoid decline or extinction, species need to either adjust or adapt to new environmental conditions or track their climatic niches across space. In sessile organisms such as plants, phenotypic plasticity can help maintain fitness in variable and even novel environmental conditions and is therefore likely to play an important role in allowing them to survive climate change, particularly in the short term. Understanding a species' response to rising temperature is crucial for planning well-targeted and cost-effective conservation measures. We sampled seeds of three Hypericum species (H. maculatum, H. montanum, and H. perforatum), from a total of 23 populations originating from different parts of their native distribution areas in Europe. We grew them under four different temperature regimes in a greenhouse to simulate current and predicted future climatic conditions in the distribution areas. We measured flowering start, flower count, and subsequent seed weight, allowing us to study variations in the thermal plasticity of flowering phenology and its relation to fitness. Our results show that individuals flowered earlier with increasing temperature, while the degree of phenological plasticity varied among species. More specifically, the plasticity of H. maculatum varied depending on population origin, with individuals from the leading range edge being less plastic. Importantly, we show a positive relationship between higher plasticity and increased flower production, indicating adaptive phenological plasticity. The observed connection between plasticity and fitness supports the idea that plasticity itself may be adaptive. This study underlines the need for information on plasticity for predicting species' potential to thrive under global change and the need for studies on whether higher phenotypic plasticity is currently being selected for as natural populations experience a rapidly changing climate.

opencc-zeroJun 2024View details →

dryad40/100

Data for: Plasticity in mosquito size and thermal tolerance across a latitudinal climate gradient

Variations in heat tolerance among populations can determine whether a species can cope with ongoing climate change. Such variation may be especially important for ectotherms whose body temperatures, and consequently, physiological processes, are regulated by external conditions. Additionally, differences in body size are often associated with latitudinal clines, thought to be driven by climate gradients. While studies have begun to explore variation in body size and heat tolerance within species, our understanding of these patterns across large spatial scales, particularly regarding the roles of plasticity and genetic differences, remains incomplete. Here, we examine body size, as measured by wing length, and thermal tolerance, as measured by the time to immobilization at high temperatures ("thermal knockdown"), in populations of the mosquito Aedes sierrensis collected from across a large latitudinal climate gradient spanning 1300 km (34-44 °N). We find that mosquitoes collected from lower latitudes and warmer climates were more tolerant of high temperatures than those collected from higher latitudes and colder climates. Moreover, body size increased with latitude and decreased with temperature, a pattern consistent with James' rule, which appears to be a result of plasticity rather than genetic variation. Our results suggest that warmer environments produce smaller and more thermally tolerant populations.

opencc-zeroJun 2024View details →

zenodo40/100

Figure 1 in Limited thermal plasticity in high mountain tropical water bears

Figure 1. The environmental temperature is depicted in black while the moss temperature is shown in green. Temperatures were recorded every minute from October 18th to November 16th, 2023. Throughout the day, temperatures were not stable. The average environmental temperature was 14.7 °C, ranging from a minimum of 9.3 °C to a maximum of 25.6 °C. The average moss temperature was 14.6 °C, ranging from a minimum of 9.6 °C to a maximum of 23.1 °C.

opencc-by-4.0Jun 2024View details →

dryad40/100

Thermal phenotypic plasticity of pre- and post-copulatory male harm buffers sexual conflict in wild Drosophila melanogaster

<div> Strong sexual selection frequently leads to sexual conflict and ensuing male harm, whereby males increase their reproductive success at the expense of harming females. Male harm is a widespread evolutionary phenomenon with a strong bearing on population viability. Thus, understanding how it unfolds in the wild is a current priority. Here, we sampled a wild Drosophila melanogaster population and studied male harm across the normal range of temperatures under which it reproduces optimally in nature by comparing female lifetime reproductive success and underlying male harm mechanisms under monogamy (i.e., low male competition/harm) vs. polyandry (i.e., high male competition/harm). While females had equal lifetime reproductive success across temperatures under monogamy, polyandry resulted in a maximum decrease of female fitness at 24°C (35%), reducing its impact at both 20°C (22%), and 28°C (10%). Furthermore, female fitness components and pre- (i.e., harassment) and post-copulatory (i.e., ejaculate toxicity) mechanisms of male harm were asymmetrically affected by temperature. At 20ºC, male harassment of females was reduced, and polyandry accelerated female actuarial ageing. In contrast, the effect of mating on female receptivity (a component of ejaculate toxicity) was only modulated at 28ºC, where the mating costs for females decreased and polyandry mostly resulted in accelerated reproductive ageing. We thus show that, across a natural thermal range, sexual conflict processes and their effects on female fitness components are plastic and complex. As a result, the net effect of male harm on overall population viability is likely to be lower than previously surmised. We discuss how such plasticity may affect selection, adaptation and, ultimately, evolutionary rescue under a warming climate. </div>

opencc-zeroApr 2023View details →

dryad40/100

Data from: Thermal plasticity in development and diapause strategy in a temperate butterfly across a latitudinal gradient

<ol> <li>Trade-offs among traits are central to life-history theory and often closely linked to an organism's fitness. Understanding how these trade-offs vary among populations and across environments is therefore important to more accurately predict species' responses to future climate change. However, the extent to which responses vary across populations remains unknown because few studies investigate intraspecific differences. </li> <li>We performed a full-factorial split-brood common garden experiment to test how variation in rearing temperature affects developmental timing and other traits important for survival during diapause in the Glanville fritillary butterfly (Melitaea cinxia). Pre-diapause larvae originating from four regions across a latitudinal cline across Europe were reared at four temperatures (25, 28, 31, and 34 °C), and we used a reaction norm approach to test for evidence of genetic differentiation and variation in developmental plasticity across regions.</li> <li>We found clear signs of genetic differentiation in multiple developmental traits, as well as differences in developmental plasticity. Northern larvae entered diapause in the fourth instar when the temperatures were low, whereas southern larvae did so in the fifth instar. As a result, development time is canalized with regards to temperature in northern larvae: due to entering diapause one stage earlier, they develop fast even in the cold, whereas southern larvae always develop slower, especially at low temperatures. As a trade-off, northern larvae have a lower body mass when reared at cooler temperatures compared to southern larvae, and they show increased plasticity in diapause mass. No clear clinal patterns were found in relative fat content.</li> <li>Our results show that trade-offs between body size, development time and growth rate can vary within species living across environmental clines, possibly as a consequence of natural selection to local environmental conditions or other genetic constraints. This variation highlights the importance of recognising the context-dependency of relationships between important life-history traits and their interactions with local environments in predicting species' responses to climate change.</li> </ol>

opencc-zeroSep 2023View details →

dryad40/100