In absence of local adaptation, plasticity and spatially varying selection rule : a view from genomic reaction norms in a panmictic species (Anguilla rostrata)

• Published in: BMC Genomics
• Main Authors: Cote, Caroline L., Castonguay, Martin, Kalujnaia, McWilliam Svetlana, Cramb, Gordon, Bernatchez, Louis
• Other Authors: NERC, University of St Andrews. School of Medicine
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: 2014
• Subjects: Anguilla; Panmixia; Trancriptome; Microarrays; Genomic reaction norm; Plasticity; Gene-environment interactions; Conservation; St-Lawrence-river; Transport protein expression; Endangered European eel; American eel; Gene-expression; Phenotypic plasticity; Life-history; Habitat use; Glass eel; Developmental plasticity; QH301 Biology; BDC; R2C; QH301; Canada; Lawrence River; European eel
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10023/5116; https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2164-15-403

This research was funded through the Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada as well as a Discovery grant from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada to LB. Background: American eel (Anguilla rostrata) is one of the few species for which panmixia has been demonstrated at the scale of the entire species. As such, the development of long term local adaptation is impossible. However, both plasticity and spatially varying selection have been invoked in explaining how American eel may cope with an unusual broad scope of environmental conditions. Here, we address this question through transcriptomic analyses and genomic reaction norms of eels from two geographic origins reared in controlled environments. Results: The null hypothesis of no difference in gene expression between eels from the two origins was rejected. Many unique transcripts and two out of seven gene clusters showed significant difference in expression, both at time of capture and after three months of common rearing. Differences in expression were observed at numerous genes representing many functional groups when comparing eels from a same origin reared under different salinity conditions. Plastic response to different rearing conditions varied among gene clusters with three clusters showing significant origin-environment interactions translating into differential genomic norms of reaction. Most genes and functional categories showing differences between origins were previously shown to be differentially expressed in a study comparing transcription profiles between adult European eels acclimated to different salinities. Conclusions: These results emphasize that while plasticity in expression may be important, there is also a role for local genetic (and/or epigenetic) differences in explaining differences in gene expression between eels from different geographic origins. Such differences match those reported in genetically distinct populations in other fishes, both in terms of the proportion of genes that are differentially ...