RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Epigenome-associated phenotypic acclimatization to ocean acidification in a reef-building coral
JF Science Advances
JO Sci Adv
FD American Association for the Advancement of Science
SP eaar8028
DO 10.1126/sciadv.aar8028
VO 4
IS 6
A1 Liew, Yi Jin
A1 Zoccola, Didier
A1 Li, Yong
A1 Tambutté, Eric
A1 Venn, Alexander A.
A1 Michell, Craig T.
A1 Cui, Guoxin
A1 Deutekom, Eva S.
A1 Kaandorp, Jaap A.
A1 Voolstra, Christian R.
A1 Forêt, Sylvain
A1 Allemand, Denis
A1 Tambutté, Sylvie
A1 Aranda, Manuel
YR 2018
UL http://advances.sciencemag.org/content/4/6/eaar8028.abstract
AB There are increasing concerns that the current rate of climate change might outpace the ability of reef-building corals to adapt to future conditions. Work on model systems has shown that environmentally induced alterations in DNA methylation can lead to phenotypic acclimatization. While DNA methylation has been reported in corals and is thought to associate with phenotypic plasticity, potential mechanisms linked to changes in whole-genome methylation have yet to be elucidated. We show that DNA methylation significantly reduces spurious transcription in the coral Stylophora pistillata. Furthermore, we find that DNA methylation also reduces transcriptional noise by fine-tuning the expression of highly expressed genes. Analysis of DNA methylation patterns of corals subjected to long-term pH stress showed widespread changes in pathways regulating cell cycle and body size. Correspondingly, we found significant increases in cell and polyp sizes that resulted in more porous skeletons, supporting the hypothesis that linear extension rates are maintained under conditions of reduced calcification. These findings suggest an epigenetic component in phenotypic acclimatization that provides corals with an additional mechanism to cope with environmental change.