Adaptation of Drosophila to temperature extremes: bringing together quantitative and molecular approaches

By A. Hoffmann, J. G. Sørensen, Volker Loeschcke. 2003

1,027 citations recorded by the source corpus.

Although adaptation of Drosophila to thermal extremes has been investigated for many years, only recently has much progress been made in identifying the genetic and physiological basis of evolutionary shifts in thermoresistance. Here we examine the way the Drosophila research has been used to understand the evolution of plastic responses, tradeoffs and limits to selection, and to develop links between laboratory studies and adaptive shifts leading to population and species differences. Several methods have been devised to rapidly measure heat and cold resistance, but the relevance of these measures to selection pressures in nature remains largely unknown. Plastic responses to thermal extremes are usually divided into short-term exposures to sub-lethal conditions or into longer-term exposures (often referred to as hardening and acclimation respectively). Hardening responses appear to have costs associated with the expression of a heat shock protein (Hsp70). Costs of acclimation are more difficult to identify because exposing Drosophila to suboptimal conditions for a long time can have deleterious effects unrelated to the acclimation response. Quantitative genetic analyses have revealed genetic variation for thermoresistance under laboratory conditions, but variation under natural conditions has rarely been identified. In a few cases selection responses within laboratory populations have been linked to specific candidate genes and physiological mechanisms. Population comparisons have provided evidence for clinal variation in thermoresistance traits, although many studies lack power because only a few populations have been considered. Clinal patterns in candidate genes have also been demonstrated. However evidence for direct selection for thermoresistance and for the involvement of specific genes under natural conditions is mostly lacking. Clinal responses to cold extremes can involve changes in diapause strategies and altered patterns of reproduction. Inbreeding influences thermoresistance and acclimation responses, but inbreeding effects may be environment-specific. Species differences in heat or in cold resistance commonly match the geographical (climatic) distributions of species. Interspecific differences for heat resistance are usually smaller than for cold resistance. Drosophila species from the same location can differ markedly for stress resistance, and this may allow species to occupy different niches. Rapid progress is likely in the next few years in identifying genes and traits underlying variation in stress resistance among populations and species of Drosophila, and in comparing these findings to those from other taxa.

Subfields: Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience, Ecology, Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics

View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/b9417a21dae8ae7e7eb882bcdf2b9798f0eedfb0

How researchers see this paper

The researchers whose trusted networks rank it highest, strongest advocate first. Every researcher gets a different order.

In Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience

In Ecology

In Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics

Citations in the corpus

Within‐generation variation of critical thermal limits in adult Mediterranean and Natal fruit flies Ceratitis capitata and Ceratitis rosa: thermal history affects short‐term responses to temperature (2010, background): “However, thermal tolerance is strongly influenced by thermal history, such as the conditions prevailing in the insects’ environment prior to testing, parental effects, seasonal variation in weather or daily fluctuations in temperature (Hoffmann et al., 2003; Chown & Terblanche, 2007).”
Ecogeographical rules: elements of a synthesis (2008, background): “Amongst terrestrial invertebrates, the model organism Drosophila melanogaster is one of the most widely investigated (Singh & Long, 1992; Hoffmann et al., 2003).”
Living in the now: physiological mechanisms to tolerate a rapidly changing environment. (2010, background): “Much that is known of the functional significance of these proteins in natural populations of metazoans has come from work on Drosophila as well as that on intertidal ectotherms (29, 30).”
Humidity affects populations of Drosophila suzukii (Diptera: Drosophilidae) in blueberry (2016, background): “To overcome thermal extremes and water loss, insects utilize physiological mechanisms such as heat-shock proteins in drosophilid flies (Goto and Kimura 1998; Hoffmann et al. 2003; Bubliy et al. 2013) and J. Appl.”
The elements of seasonal adaptations in insects (2007, neutral): “…features (including cold hardiness, for example) within and among species of Drosophila (e.g., van Herrewege and David 1997; Chippindale et al. 1998; Hoffmann and Harshman 1999; Hoffmann et al. 2003, 2005a, 2005b), but there has been less analysis of similar phenomena in other species of insects.”
Phenotypic plasticity of thermal tolerance contributes to the invasion potential of Mediterranean fruit flies (Ceratitis capitata) (2010, methodology): “However, this lack of hardening effect may be partly a consequence of the exact experimental protocol used, as it has been previously shown that including a recovery period of 30–60 min at an intermediate temperature (20–25 ◦C) can elicit stronger responses (Hoffmann et al., 2003; Chown & Nicolson, ”
Cold adaptation in geographical populations of Drosophila melanogaster: phenotypic plasticity is more important than genetic variability (2004, positive): “The capacity to adapt to and tolerate such stresses is crucial for the persistence of populations (Hoffmann & Parsons 1991, 1997; Addo-Bediako, Chown & Gaston 2000; Chown, Addo-Bediako & Gaston 2002; Hoffmann, Sorensen & Loeschcke 2003; Klok & Chown 2003).”
Grapevine insect pests and their natural enemies in the age of global warming (2016, background): “Temperature may directly affect the immune system of the juvenile host (Bauerfeind and Fischer 2014; Hoffmann et al. 2003) and change the sensitivity of the pest to natural enemies (fungal, viral or bacterial infection or parasitoids).”