The Genomic Signature and Transcriptional Response of Metal Tolerance in Brown Trout Inhabiting Metal‐Polluted Rivers

作者：Josephine R. Paris, R. Andrew King, Joan Ferrer, Sophie Shaw, Anke Lange, Vincent Bourret, Patrick B. Hamilton, Darren Rowe, Lauren V. Laing, Audrey Farbos, Karen Moore, Mauricio A. Urbina, Ronny van Aerle, Julian Catchen, Rod W. Wilson, Nicolas R. Bury, Eduarda M. Santos, Jamie R. Stevens · 发表于：Molecular Ecology · 年份：2024 · DOI：10.1111/mec.17591 · 被引用次数：7 · 研究领域：Environmental Toxicology and Ecotoxicology、Fish Ecology and Management Studies、Heavy metals in environment

Industrial pollution is a major driver of ecosystem degradation, but it can also act as a driver of contemporary evolution. As a result of intense mining activity during the Industrial Revolution, several rivers across the southwest of England are polluted with high concentrations of metals. Despite the documented negative impacts of ongoing metal pollution, brown trout (Salmo trutta L.) survive and thrive in many of these metal-impacted rivers. We used population genomics, transcriptomics, and metal burdens to investigate the genomic and transcriptomic signatures of potential metal tolerance. RADseq analysis of six populations (originating from three metal-impacted and three control rivers) revealed strong genetic substructuring between impacted and control populations. We identified selection signatures at 122 loci, including genes related to metal homeostasis and oxidative stress. Trout sampled from metal-impacted rivers exhibited significantly higher tissue concentrations of cadmium, copper, nickel and zinc, which remained elevated after 11 days in metal-free water. After depuration, we used RNAseq to quantify gene expression differences between metal-impacted and control trout, identifying 2042 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in the gill, and 311 DEGs in the liver. Transcriptomic signatures in the gill were enriched for genes involved in ion transport processes, metal homeostasis, oxidative stress, hypoxia, and response to xenobiotics. Our findings reveal shared ge...