Transgenerational acclimation of fishes to climate change and ocean acidification

Abstract

There is growing concern about the impacts of climate change and ocean acidification on marine organisms and ecosystems, yet the potential for acclimation and adaptation to these threats is poorly understood. Whereas many short-term experiments report negative biological effects of ocean warming and acidification, new studies show that some marine species have the capacity to acclimate to warmer and more acidic environments across generations. Consequently, transgenerational plasticity may be a powerful mechanism by which populations of some species will be able to adjust to projected climate change. Here, I review recent advances in understanding transgenerational acclimation in fishes. Research over the past 2 to 3 years shows that transgenerational acclimation can partially or fully ameliorate negative effects of warming, acidification, and hypoxia in a range of different species. The molecular and cellular pathways underpinning transgenerational acclimation are currently unknown, but modern genetic methods provide the tools to explore these mechanisms. Despite the potential benefits of transgenerational acclimation, there could be limitations to the phenotypic traits that respond transgenerationally, and trade-offs between life stages, that need to be investigated. Future studies should also test the potential interactions between transgenerational plasticity and genetic evolution to determine how these two processes will shape adaptive responses to environmental change over coming decades.

Ecological Epigenetics in Marine Metazoans

“…For example, in marine metazoans, there is abundant evidence that physiological plasticity created by transgenerational plasticity (TGP) are "first response" options for organisms to adjust to rapid environmental change. In marine ecosystems, evidence is accruing that environmental stress can be buffered by TGP, a situation where the environmental experience of the adults can influence the phenotype of the progeny (Salinas and Munch, 2012;Munday, 2014), with maternal effects being a prime example (Marshall, 2008). Notably, TGP has been documented in marine organisms in response to variable pH and/or elevated pCO 2 conditions in an ocean acidification context, for example (see Table 2).…”

Preconditioning in the reef-building coralPocillopora damicornisand the potential for trans-generational acclimatization in coral larvae under future climate change conditions

“…Evidence of parental effects such as trans-generational acclimatization in other marine organisms suggests that the thermo-tolerance of offspring is substantially influenced by parental thermal history . Additionally, with the heightened concern regarding OA impacts in the marine realm, the study of trans-generational acclimation associated with OA stress is becoming an active area of research (Kurihara, 2008;Donelson et al, 2012;Dupont et al, 2013;Miller et al, 2012;Parker et al, 2012;Allan et al, 2014;Munday, 2014). This early OA work has primarily focused on organisms with relatively short generation times (i.e.…”

Adult exposure to ocean acidification is maladaptive for larvae of the Sydney rock oyster Saccostrea glomerata in the presence of multiple stressors

“…Parental effects have been identified as a source of rapid acclimation that may allow marine populations to persist as our surface oceans continue to decrease in pH [1,2]. For several marine invertebrates, exposure of parents to ocean acidification (OA) conditions promotes phenotypic changes in their larvae resulting in improved performance in those same acidified conditions [3][4][5][6][7][8].…”

“…The prevalence of extreme weather events, freshwater intrusions and hypoxia will also increase [11]. In the presence of multiple stressors not previously conditioned to, the parental effects that enhance larval performance following parental exposure to OA, as a single stressor, may be of limited benefit or have negative repercussions [1,2].…”