Abstract:

Phenotypic plasticity – an organism’s ability to change traits in response to its environment – can improve an individual’s fitness by promoting a phenotype better suited for current environmental conditions. Phenotypic expression can be altered by direct experiences (i.e., within-generation plasticity), or experiences of previous generations (i.e., transgenerational plasticity). Transgenerational plasticity can help offspring overcome environmental stressors, such as predation, by using epigenetic information from their parent(s). Offspring may have varied contributions of epigenetic information, as seen in simultaneous hermaphrodites, which can reproduce via outcrossing or self-fertilization (i.e., selfing). While predation’s influence on transgenerational effects has been described, the relative influence of epigenetic information from one or two parental sources is unknown. The objective of this study was to determine how transgenerational epigenetic effects of predation risk are influenced by selfing and outcrossing. /Physa acuta/, hermaphroditic freshwater snails, were collected from Penn State Behrend’s campus and allowed to mate. The resulting F_1 generation was exposed to treatments consisting of all combinations of the absence or presence of predation risk and absence or presence of a mate, resulting in six F_2 generation lineages. Shell landmarking and a behavioral assay were completed to quantify anti-predator response of the F_2 generation. These data are currently undergoing analysis and will be discussed further at the Sigma Xi Undergraduate Research Conference. It is anticipated that these findings can provide insight to the significance of transgenerational epigenetic inheritance, particularly as it relates to the use of different mating strategies.


 

Team Members

Haley Altadonna | (Lynne Beaty) | Penn State Behrend Ecology

 

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