%0 Journal Article
%T Environmental Heterogeneity and Phenotypic Divergence: Can Heritable Epigenetic Variation Aid Speciation?
%A Ruth Flatscher
%A Bo£¿o Frajman
%A Peter Sch£¿nswetter
%A Ovidiu Paun
%J Genetics Research International
%D 2012
%I Hindawi Publishing Corporation
%R 10.1155/2012/698421
%X The dualism of genetic predisposition and environmental influences, their interactions, and respective roles in shaping the phenotype have been a hot topic in biological sciences for more than two centuries. Heritable epigenetic variation mediates between relatively slowly accumulating mutations in the DNA sequence and ephemeral adaptive responses to stress, thereby providing mechanisms for achieving stable, but potentially rapidly evolving phenotypic diversity as a response to environmental stimuli. This suggests that heritable epigenetic signals can play an important role in evolutionary processes, but so far this hypothesis has not been rigorously tested. A promising new area of research focuses on the interaction between the different molecular levels that produce phenotypic variation in wild, closely-related taxa that lack genome-wide genetic differentiation. By pinpointing specific adaptive traits and investigating the mechanisms responsible for phenotypic differentiation, such study systems could allow profound insights into the role of epigenetics in the evolution and stabilization of phenotypic discontinuities, and could add to our understanding of adaptive strategies to diverse environmental conditions and their dynamics. 1. Introduction Patterns and causes of biological variation have fascinated and challenged natural scientists for a long time. The Darwinian evolutionary theory highlights the importance of natural variation as raw material upon which selection processes can act, thereby increasing the fitness of locally adapted phenotypes [1]. Conceptual and technical developments since the late 19th century have greatly enhanced our understanding of some of the main mechanisms producing and maintaining biological variation, namely, genetic mutation and recombination [2]. However, natural selection acts upon phenotypic variation represented by the individual [3], which is delimited by its genetic constitution, but also shaped by its specific environment [4] and developmental processes [5]. The process of evolution is thus a result of complex interactions between various intrinsic and extrinsic factors [6]. Therefore, current evolutionary investigations should consider several levels of biological variation [7]. First, differences in the DNA sequence account for a great amount of biological variation: the genetic system defines the range of functional possibilities of each individual. However, these heritable differences translate into the phenotype only indirectly via the resulting RNA and protein products which mould the structure and
%U http://www.hindawi.com/journals/gri/2012/698421/