Article
Cell Biology
Tess Renahan, Ralf J. J. Sommer
Summary: Resource competition drives the evolution of novel polyphenisms in many organisms, and parasitic nematodes provide a malleable environment to study the role of polyphenisms in organismal interactions.
FRONTIERS IN CELL AND DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Shuai Sun, Christian Roedelsperger, Ralf J. Sommer
Summary: This study implemented single worm transcriptomics in the nematode Pristionchus pacificus, providing a high-resolution map of the developmental transcriptome and revealing oscillatory gene expression patterns and their potential regulatory functions. The research offers an updated protocol for SWT in nematodes and compares oscillatory gene expression dynamics between the two model organisms, P. pacificus and C. elegans.
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Catia Igreja, Ralf J. Sommer
Summary: The role of sulfation in most invertebrates is not well understood, but recent studies in nematodes have revealed its involvement in the regulation of development and phenotypic plasticity.
FRONTIERS IN MOLECULAR BIOSCIENCES
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Giacomo Puglielli, Carlos P. Carmona, Laura Varone, Lauri Laanisto, Carlo Ricotta
Summary: In trait-based ecology, it is common to use measures to quantify phenotypic variation between populations. However, these measures overlook the within-population trait variability and some of them cannot be partitioned between populations. This study proposes a new measure called the phenotypic dissimilarity (PhD) index to address these issues and provide a tool for quantifying phenotypic variation within and between species.
Article
Ecology
Shane L. Hogle, Iina Hepolehto, Lasse Ruokolainen, Johannes Cairns, Teppo Hiltunen, Jonathan Chase
Summary: Modifying intraspecific trait diversity can alter competitive hierarchies between different species, leading to competitive exclusion. This competitive outcome is driven by foraging traits and has significant impacts on prey community assembly.
Article
Ecology
Xiao Xu, Chenhao Zhou, Qiang He, Shiyun Qiu, Yan Zhang, Ji Yang, Bo Li, Ming Nie
Summary: This study reveals that the invasive plant Spartina alterniflora exhibits plasticity in light use, reducing intraspecific competition and increasing biomass production. Shorter individuals show higher light-use efficiency and specific leaf area in response to reduced light intensity, while taller individuals do not exhibit this ecophysiological plasticity.
Review
Parasitology
Juan F. Quintana, Martin Zoltner, Mark C. Field
Summary: Parasite differentiation is essential for adaptation to hosts and environments, with the transition between vertebrate and insect stages being well studied in African trypanosomes. Activation of advantageous metabolic pathways in the insect host leads to the formation of a 'stumpy' form. Various stimuli and stress conditions can trigger similar changes, suggesting a repurposing of a generic stress response for gains in parasite fitness during transmission.
TRENDS IN PARASITOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Zoology
Ronaldo C. Gurgel-Lourenco, Carlos A. de S. Rodrigues-Filho, Paulo Victor de Oliveira Araujo, Jorge Sanchez-Botero
Summary: This study evaluated the morphological changes in Brazilian silverside populations in different environments and found that body shape is closely related to habitat, with food availability being a significant factor influencing ecomorphological patterns.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
James W. Lightfoot, Mohannad Dardiry, Ata Kalirad, Stefano Giaimo, Gabi Eberhardt, Hanh Witte, Martin Wilecki, Christian Roedelsperger, Arne Traulsen, Ralf J. Sommer
Summary: Resource polyphenisms in Pristionchus nematodes are closely related to reproductive mode and influenced by genetic relatedness. Different reproductive modes affect mouth forms and feeding strategies, leading to the development of microbivorous and cannibalistic morphs, which in turn shape different competitive behaviors among nematodes.
Article
Forestry
Yuan Yang, Meng Hu, Mingyang Fan, Lu Wang, Ting Lv, Huanchao Zhang, Kewang Xu, Yifan Duan, Yanming Fang
Summary: The needle traits of Pinus massoniana are mainly shaped by latitude, while the needle traits of Pinus hwangshanensis are significantly affected by annual precipitation. The intraspecific variability is stronger for leaf economic traits compared to leaf size traits.
Article
Zoology
Natsumi Kanzaki, Matthias Herrmann, Christian Weiler, Waltraud Roeseler, Tobias Theska, Jurgen Berger, Christian Roedelsperger, Ralf J. Sommer
Summary: In the past decade, intensive research has been conducted on the model organism Pristionchus pacificus and the genus Pristionchus, focusing on development, evolution, ecology, behavior, neurobiology, and genomics. Asia is identified as a biodiversity hotspot for Pristionchus worms. Nine new Pristionchus species were isolated in Mainland China through morphology, morphometrics, mating experiments, and genome-wide sequence analysis.
Article
Genetics & Heredity
Shuai Sun, Tobias Theska, Hanh Witte, Erik J. Ragsdale, Ralf J. Sommer
Summary: This study identified a gene involved in nematode mouth formation and revealed its role in mouth morphology and external cuticle deposition. Additionally, previously unrecognized defects in the mouth structure were discovered through geometric morphometric analysis. The findings of this study open up new avenues for researching the molecular composition of nematode mouths, which is crucial for understanding their extreme ecological diversification.
Article
Ecology
Jose M. Gomez, Adela Gonzalez-Megias, Cristina Armas, Eduardo Narbona, Luis Navarro, Francisco Perfectti
Summary: Plasticity can have direct effects on the interactions between species, by expanding or shifting interaction niches, and ultimately modifying the structure and functionality of ecological networks. This causal pathway may explain how interaction niches evolve quickly in response to rapid environmental changes and is important for understanding the impact of global change on ecological interactions.
Review
Ecology
M. J. Thompson, P. Capilla-Lasheras, D. M. Dominoni, D. Reale, A. Charmantier
Summary: Numerous studies in the past decade have explored how urbanisation affects mean phenotypes of populations, but little is known about its impact on phenotypic variation, which plays a key role in shaping eco-evolutionary processes. Our review suggests that urbanisation often increases intraspecific phenotypic variation through various processes, with significant implications for urban populations and communities.
TRENDS IN ECOLOGY & EVOLUTION
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Jonas Schmeddes, Lena Muffler, Adria Barbeta, Ilka Beil, Andreas Bolte, Stefanie Holm, Pascal Karitter, Marcin Klisz, Magnus Loef, Manuel Nicolas, Josep Penuelas, Yann Vitasse, Robert Weigel, Juergen Kreyling
Summary: This study aimed to quantify the phenotypic variation of temperate forest trees in central Europe across various intraspecific scales and evaluate their potential to respond to changing climate conditions.
GLOBAL ECOLOGY AND BIOGEOGRAPHY
(2023)