Abstract
Phenotypic plasticity sensu lato, the generation of different phenotypes from the same genome, is caused by developmental programmes, developmental stochasticity and environmental impacts. These triggers can evoke changes of DNA methylation and histone modification marks on the chromatin and of non-coding RNA pathways that regulate DNA expression, leading finally to the production of different phenotypes from the same DNA sequence. The power of epigenetic mechanisms in shaping of phenotypes is most impressively demonstrated by the structurally and functionally different cell types in the body of multicellular animals and the phenotypically very different life stages of holometabolous insects that are produced from the single DNA of the zygote. However, epigenetic mechanisms can also help generating substantial phenotypic variation in populations, as revealed by experiments with clonal animals. This phenotypic variation is caused by bed-hedging developmental stochasticity and directional environmental induction, which usually act together but in different weighing, depending on the environment. The generation of epigenetically mediated phenotypic plasticity is obviously effective in all animal populations, but is particularly important for clonal and genetically impoverished populations helping them to survive when the environmental conditions change. It also helps invasive groups, sessile taxa and populations in extreme habitats to adapt to their particularly challenging environments. Epigenetic mechanisms are evolutionarily relevant as well. They were shown to trigger trait alteration in early domestication and consolidate speciation by contributing to reproductive isolation, chromatin remodelling and alteration of gene expression. Some epigenetically mediated phenotypes can be inherited to the next generations, particularly if they provide advantages in changing or new environments. Under long-lasting favourable conditions, they may be genetically integrated, starting new evolutionary trajectories. Because epigenetic changes can either be the consequence of genetic changes or trigger genetic changes, depending on context, they can be both followers and leaders in animal evolution.
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Vogt, G. (2022). Epigenetics and Phenotypic Plasticity in Animals. In: Vaschetto, L.M. (eds) Epigenetics, Development, Ecology and Evolution. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-13771-6_3
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