Phenotypic plasticity and divergence in gene expression.

The extent to which phenotypic plasticity, or the ability of a single genotype to produce different phenotypes in different environments, impedes or promotes genetic divergence has been a matter of debate within evolutionary biology for many decades (see, for example, Ghalambor et al. ; Pfennig et al. ). Similarly, the role of evolution in shaping phenotypic plasticity remains poorly understood (Pigliucci ). In this issue of Molecular Ecology, Dayan et al. () provide empirical data relevant to these questions by assessing the extent of plasticity and divergence in the expression levels of 2272 genes in muscle tissue from killifish (genus Fundulus) exposed to different temperatures. F. heteroclitus (Fig. A) and F. grandis are minnows that inhabit estuarine marshes (Fig. B) along the coasts of the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico in North America. These habitats undergo large variations in temperature both daily and seasonally, and these fish are known to demonstrate substantial phenotypic plasticity in response to temperature change (e.g. Fangue et al. ). Furthermore, the range of F. heteroclitus spans a large latitudinal gradient of temperatures, such that northern populations experience temperatures that are on average ~10°C colder than do southern populations (Schulte ). By comparing gene expression patterns between populations of these fish from different thermal habitats held in the laboratory at three different temperatures, Dayan et al. () address two important questions regarding the interacting effects of plasticity and evolution: (i) How does phenotypic plasticity affect adaptive divergence? and (ii) How does adaptive divergence affect plasticity?