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Published VersionCC BY V4.0, Open Access
Journal article
Urbanization is associated with modifications in DNA methylation in a small passerine bird
Evolutionary Applications, Vol.14(1), pp.85-98
2021
Abstract
Urbanisation represents a fierce driver of phenotypic change, yet the molecular mechanisms underlying observed phenotypic patterns are poorly understood. Epigenetic changes are expected to facilitate more rapid adaption to changing or novel environments, such as our towns and cities, compared with slow changes in gene sequence. A comparison of liver and blood tissue from great tits Parus major originating from an urban and a forest site demonstrated that urbanisation is associated with variation in genome‐wide patterns of DNA methylation. Combining reduced representation bisulphite sequencing with transcriptome data, we revealed habitat differences in DNA methylation patterns that suggest a regulated and coordinated response to the urban environment. In the liver, genomic sites that were differentially methylated between urban‐ and forest‐dwelling birds were over‐represented in regulatory regions of the genome and more likely to occur in expressed genes. DNA methylation levels were also inversely correlated with gene expression at transcription start sites. Furthermore, differentially methylated CpG sites, in liver, were over‐represented in pathways involved in (i) steroid biosynthesis, (ii) superoxide metabolism, (iii) secondary alcohol metabolism, (iv) chylomicron remodelling, (v) cholesterol transport, (vi) reactive oxygen species (ROS) metabolic process, and (vii) epithelial cell proliferation. This corresponds with earlier studies identifying diet and exposure to ROS as two of the main drivers of divergence between organisms in urban and non‐urban environments. Conversely, in blood, sites that were differentially methylated between urban‐ and forest‐dwelling birds were under‐represented in regulatory regions, more likely to occur in non‐expressed genes and not over‐represented in specific biological pathways. It remains to be determined if diverging patterns of DNA methylation represent adaptive evolutionary responses and if the conclusions can be more widely attributed to urbanisation.
Details
- Title
- Urbanization is associated with modifications in DNA methylation in a small passerine bird
- Authors
- Hannah Watson (Corresponding Author) - Lund UniversityDaniel Powell (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Science and Engineering - LegacyPablo Salmon (Author) - University of GlasgowArne Jacobs (Author) - University of GlasgowCaroline Isaksson (Author) - Lund University
- Publication details
- Evolutionary Applications, Vol.14(1), pp.85-98
- Publisher
- Wiley-Blackwell Publishing, Inc.
- Date published
- 2021
- DOI
- 10.1111/eva.13160
- ISSN
- 1752-4571; 1752-4563
- Copyright note
- Copyright © 2020 The Authors. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
- Organisation Unit
- School of Science and Engineering - Legacy; University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland; Office of Research; School of Science, Technology and Engineering; Centre for Bioinnovation
- Language
- English
- Record Identifier
- 99486008302621
- Output Type
- Journal article
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