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Field-Based Thermal Physiology Assay: Cold Shock Recovery under Ambient Conditions
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Phenotypic plasticity is not affected by experimental evolution in constant, predictable or unpredictable fluctuating

T Manenti1, V Loeschcke1, N N Moghadam1

  • 1Department of Bioscience, Section for Genetics, Ecology and Evolution, Aarhus University, Aarhus C, Denmark.

Journal of Evolutionary Biology
|August 25, 2015
PubMed
Summary

Experimental evolution in constant or fluctuating temperatures did not alter phenotypic plasticity in Drosophila simulans. This suggests that phenotypic plasticity may have negligible costs, potentially limiting its evolution in response to environmental changes.

Keywords:
Drosophila simulansadaptabilitycosts of plasticitylaboratory natural selectionstress resistancevarying environments

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Area of Science:

  • Evolutionary biology
  • Genetics
  • Environmental science

Background:

  • Phenotypic plasticity, the ability of an organism to change its phenotype in response to environmental changes, is crucial for adaptation.
  • Experimental evolution studies often assume that maintaining plasticity incurs costs, leading to its reduction under stable conditions.
  • The impact of different thermal regimes on the evolution of phenotypic plasticity remains incompletely understood.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the effect of experimental evolution under constant versus fluctuating temperature regimes on phenotypic plasticity in Drosophila simulans.
  • To determine if predictable or unpredictable fluctuating temperatures influence the evolution of plasticity differently.
  • To assess the relationship between evolved differences in fitness and stress resistance and changes in phenotypic plasticity.

Main Methods:

  • Populations of Drosophila simulans were subjected to experimental evolution for multiple generations.
  • Three distinct thermal regimes were used: constant temperature, predictable daily fluctuating temperatures, and unpredictable daily fluctuating temperatures.
  • Phenotypic plasticity was measured across various life history traits and stress resistance traits.

Main Results:

  • Contrary to expectations, experimental evolution in constant or fluctuating temperature regimes did not significantly affect the levels of phenotypic plasticity in any of the investigated traits.
  • Populations evolved under different thermal regimes exhibited significant differences in their mean stress resistance and fitness traits.
  • No correlation was found between the evolved mean trait values and the levels of phenotypic plasticity.

Conclusions:

  • The maintenance of phenotypic plasticity may incur low or negligible costs, contrary to previous assumptions.
  • The potential for phenotypic plasticity to evolve in response to varying environmental conditions might be limited due to these low costs.
  • Environmental predictability or unpredictability in daily temperatures did not differentially impact the evolution of phenotypic plasticity in this study.