Dnmt1 is essential for egg production and embryo viability in the large milkweed bug, Oncopeltus fasciatus

Bewick, Adam J.; Sanchez, Zachary; McKinney, Elizabeth C.; Moore, Allen J.; Moore, Patricia J.; Schmitz, Robert J.

doi:10.1186/s13072-018-0246-5

Cited by 80 publications

(192 citation statements)

References 75 publications

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“…This supports the idea in Bewick et al. () that methylation may not directly influence caste determination. However, the differentially methylated gene list obtained for A. mellifera used queen samples to represent the reproductive caste (Lyko et al.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

“…Previous research using the milkweed bug ( Oncopeltus fasciatus ) found knocking down Dnmt1 , the gene responsible for DNA methylation maintenance, in ovary tissue with RNAi had no effect on gene expression, however these individuals could no longer reproduce (Bewick et al. ). This suggests methylation may play an alternative role, rather than direct regulation of gene expression, in reproduction of some insects.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Bewick et al. () suggest this role may be the regulation of genome stability and/or the regulation of vital cellular processes. The variety of GO terms involved in biological processes we obtained for the differentially methylated genes between castes supports this idea.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Only a small nonsignificant number of genes are both differentially methylated and differentially expressed between castes and there is no relationship between the degree of differential methylation and differential expression on a gene level. Previous research using the milkweed bug (Oncopeltus fasciatus) found knocking down Dnmt1, the gene responsible for DNA methylation maintenance, in ovary tissue with RNAi had no effect on gene expression, however these individuals could no longer reproduce (Bewick et al 2019). This suggests methylation may play an alternative role, rather than direct regulation of gene expression, in reproduction of some insects.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This suggests methylation may play an alternative role, rather than direct regulation of gene expression, in reproduction of some insects. Bewick et al (2019) suggest this role may be the regulation of genome stability and/or the regulation of vital cellular processes. The variety of GO terms involved in biological processes we obtained for the differentially methylated genes between castes supports this idea.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Methylation and gene expression differences between reproductive and sterile bumblebee workers

2019

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Phenotypic plasticity is the production of multiple phenotypes from a single genome and is notably observed in social insects. Multiple epigenetic mechanisms have been associated with social insect plasticity, with DNA methylation being explored to the greatest extent. DNA methylation is thought to play a role in caste determination in Apis mellifera, and other social insects, but there is limited knowledge on its role in other bee species. In this study, we analyzed whole genome bisulfite sequencing and RNA‐seq data sets from head tissue of reproductive and sterile castes of the eusocial bumblebee Bombus terrestris. We found that genome‐wide methylation in B. terrestris is similar to other holometabolous insects and does not differ between reproductive castes. We did, however, find differentially methylated genes between castes, which are enriched for multiple biological processes including reproduction. However, we found no relationship between differential methylation and differential gene expression or differential exon usage between castes. Our results also indicate high intercolony variation in methylation. These findings suggest that methylation is associated with caste differences but may serve an alternate function, other than direct caste determination in this species. This study provides the first insights into the nature of a bumblebee caste‐specific methylome as well as its interaction with gene expression and caste‐specific alternative splicing, providing greater understanding of the role of methylation in phenotypic plasticity within social bee species. Future experimental work is needed to determine the function of methylation and other epigenetic mechanisms in insects.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Methylation and gene expression differences between reproductive and sterile bumblebee workers

2019

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Pollution induces epigenetic effects that are stably transmitted across multiple generations

et al. 2022

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It has been hypothesized that the effects of pollutants on phenotypes can be passed to subsequent generations through epigenetic inheritance, affecting populations long after the removal of a pollutant. But there is still little evidence that pollutants can induce persistent epigenetic effects in animals. Here, we show that low doses of commonly used pollutants induce genome‐wide differences in cytosine methylation in the freshwater crustacean Daphnia pulex. Uniclonal populations were either continually exposed to pollutants or switched to clean water, and methylation was compared to control populations that did not experience pollutant exposure. Although some direct changes to methylation were only present in the continually exposed populations, others were present in both the continually exposed and switched to clean water treatments, suggesting that these modifications had persisted for 7 months (>15 generations). We also identified modifications that were only present in the populations that had switched to clean water, indicating a long‐term legacy of pollutant exposure distinct from the persistent effects. Pollutant‐induced differential methylation tended to occur at sites that were highly methylated in controls. Modifications that were observed in both continually and switched treatments were highly methylated in controls and showed reduced methylation in the treatments. On the other hand, modifications found just in the switched treatment tended to have lower levels of methylation in the controls and showed increase methylation in the switched treatment. In a second experiment, we confirmed that sublethal doses of the same pollutants generate effects on life histories for at least three generations following the removal of the pollutant. Our results demonstrate that even low doses of pollutants can induce transgenerational epigenetic effects that are stably transmitted over many generations. Persistent effects are likely to influence phenotypic development, which could contribute to the rapid adaptation, or extinction, of populations confronted by anthropogenic stressors.

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Current knowledge and implementations of Bemisia tabaci genomic technologies for sustainable control

et al. 2022

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Dnmt1 is essential for egg production and embryo viability in the large milkweed bug, Oncopeltus fasciatus

Cited by 80 publications

References 75 publications

Methylation and gene expression differences between reproductive and sterile bumblebee workers

Methylation and gene expression differences between reproductive and sterile bumblebee workers

Pollution induces epigenetic effects that are stably transmitted across multiple generations

Current knowledge and implementations of Bemisia tabaci genomic technologies for sustainable control

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