Integrative Genomic Approaches to Studying Epigenetic Mechanisms of Phenotypic Plasticity in the Aphid

Mary Grantham (1) , Jennifer A. Brisson (1) , Denis Tagu (2) , Gaël Le Trionnaire (2)

1 University of Rochester [USA]
2 IGEPP - Institut de Génétique, Environnement et Protection des Plantes

Phenotypic plasticity is the nongenic variation in phenotype due to environmental factors. It is a common phenomenon in the animal kingdom that is not well understood at the molecular level. A tenable form of phenotypic plasticity for molecular research is polyphenism, which is an extreme form of phenotypic plasticity that results in discrete, alternative morphs. Epigenetic mechanisms have been hypothesized as the molecular regulators of polyphenism, in particular DNA methylation and chromatin remodeling. The pea aphid exhibits multiple polyphenisms including winged and wingless females during summer (wing polyphenism) and asexual and sexual morphs during summer and fall, respectively (reproductive polyphenism). The aphid is ideally situated for research into the molecular basis of polyphenism, with a sequenced genome and multiple transcriptomic studies that have begun identifying key molecular regulators of these two polyphenisms. The aphid also possesses the genes necessary for DNA methylation and chromatin remodeling. The pea aphid system is thus primed for future research into the epigenetic regulation of polyphenisms

Domaines: Biodiversité et Ecologie

Mary Grantham, Jennifer A. Brisson, Denis Tagu, Gaël Le Trionnaire. Integrative Genomic Approaches to Studying Epigenetic Mechanisms of Phenotypic Plasticity in the Aphid. Short Views on Insect Genomics and Proteomics, 3, Springer International Publishing AG, 2015, Entomology in Focus, 978-3-319-24235-4. ⟨10.1007/978-3-319-24235-4_5⟩. ⟨hal-01398438⟩