RT Journal Article
T1 A field study of the molecular response of brown macroalgae to heavy metal exposure: An (epi)genetic approach
A1 García-Seoane, Rita
A1 Richards, Christina L.
A1 Aboal Viñas, Jesús
A1 Fernández Escribano, José Ángel
A1 Schmid, Marc W.
A1 Boquete Seoane, María Teresa
K1 Epigenetics
K1 EpiGBS
K1 Genetics
K1 Heavy metals
K1 DNA methylation
K1 SNPs
AB Our understanding of the relative contribution of genetic and epigenetic mechanisms to organismal response to stress is largely biased towards specific taxonomic groups (e.g. seed plants) and environmental stresses (e.g. drought and salinity). In previous work, we found intraspecific differences in heavy metal (HM) uptake capacity in the brown macroalgae Fucus vesiculosus. The molecular mechanisms underlying these differences, however, remained unknown. Here, we evaluated the concentrations of HMs, and characterized the genetic (single nucleotide polymorphisms) and epigenetic (cytosine DNA methylation) variability in reciprocal transplants of F. vesiculosus between two polluted and two unpolluted sites on the NW Spanish coast after 90 days. Genetic and epigenetic differentiation did not explain the phenotypic differentiation observed, possibly due to the combined effect of multiple environmental factors acting on the algae in their natural habitats. Nonetheless, we provide further evidence of intraspecific genetic differentiation in F. vesiculosus at short spatial scales, as well as first evidence of population-specific epigenetic changes in brown macroalgae in response to changes in environmental conditions (i.e. transplantation ex situ). We propose that both genetic and, to some extent, epigenetic mechanisms might impinge upon the adaptive potential of this species to environmental change, but this needs to be further addressed.
PB Elsevier
SN 0304-3894
YR 2024
FD 2024-10-28
LK https://hdl.handle.net/10347/39847
UL https://hdl.handle.net/10347/39847
LA eng
NO García-Seoane, R., Richards, C. L., Aboal, J. R., Fernández, J. Á, Schmid, M. W., & Boquete, M. T. (2024). A field study of the molecular response of brown macroalgae to heavy metal exposure: An (epi)genetic approach. Journal of Hazardous Materials, 48010.1016/j.jhazmat.2024.136304
NO The authors are members of the Galician Competitive Research Group GRC/GPC2016-002 and to the CRETUS Strategic Partnership (AGRUP2015/02), which are co-funded by FEDER (EU). This research has received funding from the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities, through the “Proyectos de Generación del Conocimiento 2022” program under the project ID “PID2022–142802NB-I00, CoastProtect”. Dr. R. García Seoane is grateful to the Spanish Ministerio de Educación, Cultura y Deporte for a grant awarded within the Programa de Formación de Profesorado Universitario “FPU Estancias” (Ref. EST16/00109). She is currently supported by the European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation programme under a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Postdoctoral Fellowship 2023 (Grant Agreement No 101150001, PelCon). Dr. M. Teresa Boquete is currently supported by the Maria Zambrano program from the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities.
DS Minerva
RD 28 abr 2026