Abstract
Abstract The mechanisms underlying heritable phenotypic divergence associated with adaptation in response to environmental stresses may involve both genetic and epigenetic variations. Several prior studies have revealed even higher levels of epigenetic variation than genetic variation. However, few population‐level studies have explored the effects of epigenetic variation on species with high levels of genetic diversity distributed across different habitats. Using AFLP and methylation‐sensitive AFLP markers, we tested the hypothesis that epigenetic variation may contribute to differences in plants occupying different habitats when genetic variation alone cannot fully explain adaptation. As a cosmopolitan invasive species, Phragmites australis (common reed) together with high genetic diversity and remarkable adaptability has been suggested as a model for responses to global change and indicators of environmental fluctuations. We found high levels of genetic and epigenetic diversity and significant genetic/epigenetic structure within each of 12 studied populations sampled from four natural habitats of P . australis . Possible adaptive epigenetic variation was suggested by significant correlations between DNA methylation‐based epigenetic differentiation and adaptive genetic divergence in populations across the habitats. Meanwhile, various AMOVAs indicated that some epigenetic differences may respond to various local habitats. A partial Mantel test was used to tease out the correlations between genetic/epigenetic variation and habitat after controlling for the correlation between genetic and epigenetic variations. We found that epigenetic diversity was affected mostly by soil nutrient availability, suggesting that at least some epigenetic differentiation occurred independently of genetic variation. We also found stronger correlations between epigenetic variation and phenotypic traits than between genetic variation and such traits. Overall, our findings indicate that genetically based differentiation correlates with heterogeneous habitats, while epigenetic variation plays an important role in ecological differentiation in natural populations of P . australis . In addition, our results suggest that when assessing global change responses of plant species, intraspecific variation needs to be considered.
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Claims 8
Claim · model-written summary
Populations had high genetic and epigenetic diversity and significant structure.
- Taxon
- P . australis
Phragmites australise0 - Outcome
- genetic and epigenetic diversitye0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“We found high levels of genetic and epigenetic diversity and significant genetic/epigenetic structure within each of 12 studied populations sampled from four natural habitats of P . australis”
Claim · model-written summary
DNA methylation differentiation correlated significantly with adaptive genetic divergence across habitats.
- Taxon
- Phragmites australisPhragmites australist0
- Outcome
- DNA methylation‐based epigenetic differentiatione0
- Comparator
- adaptive genetic divergencee0
Not reportedDirection
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“significant correlations between DNA methylation‐based epigenetic differentiation and adaptive genetic divergence in populations across the habitats”
t0“Phragmites australis”
Claim · model-written summary
Some epigenetic differences may respond to local habitats.
- Taxon
- Phragmites australisPhragmites australist0
- Outcome
- epigenetic differencese0
- Setting
- various local habitatse0
Not reportedDirection
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“some epigenetic differences may respond to various local habitats”
t0“Phragmites australis”
Claim · model-written summary
Epigenetic diversity was affected mostly by soil nutrient availability.
- Taxon
- Phragmites australisPhragmites australist0
- Outcome
- epigenetic diversitye0
- Setting
- soil nutrient availabilitye0
Not reportedDirection
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“epigenetic diversity was affected mostly by soil nutrient availability”
t0“Phragmites australis”
Claim · model-written summary
Epigenetic variation correlated more strongly with phenotypic traits than genetic variation did.
- Taxon
- Phragmites australisPhragmites australist0
- Outcome
- correlations between epigenetic variation and phenotypic traitse0
- Direction
- strongere0
- Comparator
- genetic variatione0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“stronger correlations between epigenetic variation and phenotypic traits than between genetic variation and such traits”
t0“Phragmites australis”
Claim · model-written summary
Genetically based differentiation correlated with heterogeneous habitats.
- Taxon
- Phragmites australisPhragmites australist0
- Outcome
- genetically based differentiatione0
- Setting
- heterogeneous habitatse0
Not reportedDirection
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“genetically based differentiation correlates with heterogeneous habitats”
t0“Phragmites australis”
Claim · model-written summary
Epigenetic variation played a role in ecological differentiation.
- Taxon
- P . australisPhragmites australise0
- Outcome
- ecological differentiatione0
- Qualifier
- epigenetic variatione0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“epigenetic variation plays an important role in ecological differentiation in natural populations of P . australis”
Claim · model-written summary
The authors recommended considering intraspecific variation when assessing global change responses.
Verbatim
e0“when assessing global change responses of plant species, intraspecific variation needs to be considered”