DNA methylation dynamics in response to acute thermal exposure reveal the influence of heating, dose and recovery in the staghorn coral Acropora cervicornis
Article
Martell, HA, Hackerott, SN, Mansoor, S et al. (2025). DNA methylation dynamics in response to acute thermal exposure reveal the influence of heating, dose and recovery in the staghorn coral Acropora cervicornis
. JOURNAL OF THERMAL BIOLOGY, 134 10.1016/j.jtherbio.2025.104338
Martell, HA, Hackerott, SN, Mansoor, S et al. (2025). DNA methylation dynamics in response to acute thermal exposure reveal the influence of heating, dose and recovery in the staghorn coral Acropora cervicornis
. JOURNAL OF THERMAL BIOLOGY, 134 10.1016/j.jtherbio.2025.104338
Survival in the Anthropocene is dictated by the ability of organisms to respond to increasing environmental change. For thermally sensitive organisms, understanding the mechanisms that govern their response to environmental perturbation, and the plasticity therein, is key to predicting survival. Epigenetic mechanisms, such as DNA methylation, underlie phenotypic plasticity, regulating gene function in response to the environment. However, how the methylome responds to sublethal thermal exposure, the temporal dynamics of the response, and whether this is dose-dependent are poorly understood. Corals are sessile and have a narrow thermal envelope, making them an ideal model to explore epigenetic mechanisms underlying rapid responses to thermal variation. We exposed fragments of the staghorn coral Acropora cervicornis to +3 °C and +5 °C of heating for 1 and 2 days and compared the DNA methylation profiles of each dose to the ambient treatment immediately following the exposure and one week later. We present the first study to demonstrate the alteration of the methylome after acute sublethal thermal exposure in A. cervicornis . We observed a rapid response to thermal exposure in as little as 1 day, and no differences among doses applied immediately following heating. After a week-long recovery period, the DNA methylation profiles of heated corals no longer differed from those of the ambient treatment, suggesting the wash out of DNA methylation marks. This demonstrates the dynamic nature of the methylome, capable of rapidly changing to meet environmental conditions, though marks from acute exposure may not be retained in the long term.
