Time dynamics of stress legacy in clonal transgenerational effects: A case study on Trifolium repens
Abstract Stress can be remembered by plants in a form of stress legacy that can alter future phenotypes of previously stressed plants and even phenotypes of their offspring. DNA methylation belongs among the mechanisms mediating the stress legacy. It is however not known for how long the stress lega...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Wiley
2022-05-01
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| Series: | Ecology and Evolution |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.8959 |
| _version_ | 1828773324364185600 |
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| author | Jiaxin Quan Zuzana Münzbergová Vít Latzel |
| author_facet | Jiaxin Quan Zuzana Münzbergová Vít Latzel |
| author_sort | Jiaxin Quan |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Stress can be remembered by plants in a form of stress legacy that can alter future phenotypes of previously stressed plants and even phenotypes of their offspring. DNA methylation belongs among the mechanisms mediating the stress legacy. It is however not known for how long the stress legacy is carried by plants. If the legacy is long‐lasting, it can become maladaptive in situations when parental–offspring environment do not match. We investigated for how long after the last exposure of a parental plant to drought can the phenotype of its clonal offspring be altered. We grew parental plants of three genotypes of Trifolium repens for five months either in control conditions or in control conditions that were interrupted with intense drought periods applied for two months in four different time slots. We also treated half of the parental plants with a demethylating agent (5‐azacytidine, 5‐azaC) to test for the potential role of DNA methylation in the stress memory. Then, we transplanted parental cuttings (ramets) individually to control environment and allowed them to produce offspring ramets for two months. The drought stress experienced by parents affected phenotypes of offspring ramets. The stress legacy resulted in enhanced number of offspring ramets originating from plants that experienced drought stress even 56 days before their transplantation to the control environment. 5‐azaC altered transgenerational effects on offspring ramets. We confirmed that drought stress can trigger transgenerational effects in T. repens that is very likely mediated by DNA methylation. Most importantly, the stress legacy in parental plants persisted for at least 8 weeks suggesting that the stress legacy can persist in a clonal plant Trifolium repens for relatively long period. We suggest that the stress legacy should be considered in future ecological studies on clonal plants. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-11T15:01:08Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-7a00321711f14912bd6f5476d405fb6c |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2045-7758 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-11T15:01:08Z |
| publishDate | 2022-05-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Ecology and Evolution |
| spelling | doaj.art-7a00321711f14912bd6f5476d405fb6c2022-12-22T01:01:09ZengWileyEcology and Evolution2045-77582022-05-01125n/an/a10.1002/ece3.8959Time dynamics of stress legacy in clonal transgenerational effects: A case study on Trifolium repensJiaxin Quan0Zuzana Münzbergová1Vít Latzel2Key Laboratory of Resource Biology and Biotechnology in Western China Ministry of Education Northwest University Xi’an ChinaInstitute of Botany Czech Academy of Sciences Průhonice Czech RepublicInstitute of Botany Czech Academy of Sciences Průhonice Czech RepublicAbstract Stress can be remembered by plants in a form of stress legacy that can alter future phenotypes of previously stressed plants and even phenotypes of their offspring. DNA methylation belongs among the mechanisms mediating the stress legacy. It is however not known for how long the stress legacy is carried by plants. If the legacy is long‐lasting, it can become maladaptive in situations when parental–offspring environment do not match. We investigated for how long after the last exposure of a parental plant to drought can the phenotype of its clonal offspring be altered. We grew parental plants of three genotypes of Trifolium repens for five months either in control conditions or in control conditions that were interrupted with intense drought periods applied for two months in four different time slots. We also treated half of the parental plants with a demethylating agent (5‐azacytidine, 5‐azaC) to test for the potential role of DNA methylation in the stress memory. Then, we transplanted parental cuttings (ramets) individually to control environment and allowed them to produce offspring ramets for two months. The drought stress experienced by parents affected phenotypes of offspring ramets. The stress legacy resulted in enhanced number of offspring ramets originating from plants that experienced drought stress even 56 days before their transplantation to the control environment. 5‐azaC altered transgenerational effects on offspring ramets. We confirmed that drought stress can trigger transgenerational effects in T. repens that is very likely mediated by DNA methylation. Most importantly, the stress legacy in parental plants persisted for at least 8 weeks suggesting that the stress legacy can persist in a clonal plant Trifolium repens for relatively long period. We suggest that the stress legacy should be considered in future ecological studies on clonal plants.https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.89595‐azacytidineDNA methylationepigenetic memorystress legacy persistence |
| spellingShingle | Jiaxin Quan Zuzana Münzbergová Vít Latzel Time dynamics of stress legacy in clonal transgenerational effects: A case study on Trifolium repens Ecology and Evolution 5‐azacytidine DNA methylation epigenetic memory stress legacy persistence |
| title | Time dynamics of stress legacy in clonal transgenerational effects: A case study on Trifolium repens |
| title_full | Time dynamics of stress legacy in clonal transgenerational effects: A case study on Trifolium repens |
| title_fullStr | Time dynamics of stress legacy in clonal transgenerational effects: A case study on Trifolium repens |
| title_full_unstemmed | Time dynamics of stress legacy in clonal transgenerational effects: A case study on Trifolium repens |
| title_short | Time dynamics of stress legacy in clonal transgenerational effects: A case study on Trifolium repens |
| title_sort | time dynamics of stress legacy in clonal transgenerational effects a case study on trifolium repens |
| topic | 5‐azacytidine DNA methylation epigenetic memory stress legacy persistence |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.8959 |
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