Transgenerational Epigenetic Inheritance of Responses to Environmental Stress

TAYLORR_UBIO25ARIES

Transgenerational Epigenetic Inheritance of Responses to Environmental Stress

TAYLORR_UBIO25ARIES

Project Description

Supervisors

Dr Rebecca Taylor, Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia – contact me

Professor Alexei Maklakov, UEA, BIO

Professor Tracey Chapman, UEA, BIO

Dr Iain Macaulay, Earlham Institute

 

Background

Natural environments are changing rapidly due to anthropogenic climate change. How populations respond to these changes determines whether they adapt to more stressful environments via plasticity and/or evolution, or whether they become extinct. This creates an urgent need to understand the physiological mechanisms that regulate organismal responses to environmental stress. Recent discoveries have suggested that organisms may transfer environmentally induced phenotypic changes to multiple generations of their descendants through non-genetic mechanisms. This phenomenon, called transgenerational epigenetic inheritance, has transformed the way we think about evolutionary processes, and the effect of environments on natural populations. However, much about this process is still unknown. This project asks whether the activation of critical cellular stress responses is transmitted between generations; whether this transmission confers increased survival of populations in stressful environments, and enhanced Darwinian fitness; and how this inheritance is mechanistically achieved.

Methodology

You will determine whether two key cellular stress responses can be transmitted via transgenerational non-genetic inheritance following exposure of parental animals to environmental stressors. You will then establish whether this transgenerational inheritance enhances resistance of populations to environmental stress, and whether inherited stress response activation promotes individual fitness. Finally, you will explore the mechanistic basis for this inheritance by using scRNA-seq to establish a transcriptomic signature for stress response inheritance, and by screening candidate regulators for their roles in this process. You will use Caenorhabditis elegans as a model organism to explore these effects – the premier system for the study of transgenerational epigenetic inheritance. Together, these approaches will define a mechanism by which cellular responses to stressful environments can be non-genetically inherited, and determine whether this inheritance serves an adaptive purpose.

Training

You will gain a wide range of skills in experimental design, statistical analysis, bioinformatics, scientific writing and presentation. You will also build expertise in evolutionary biology, cell biology, and physiological techniques. In addition, you will participate in external training courses and conferences, local seminars, research discussion groups and journal clubs.

Person specification

We are looking for an enthusiastic and highly motivated individual with a strong interest in evolution, ecology, genetics, and stress response biology.

Acceptable first degree subjects: A degree related to Biological Sciences.

 

References

  • De-Souza, E.A., Thompson, M.A., Taylor, R.C. (2023). Olfactory chemosensation extends lifespan through TGF-β signaling and UPR activation. Nature Aging, https://doi.org/10.1038/s43587-023-00467-1
  • Ivimey-Cook, E.R., Sales, K., Carlsson, H., Immler, S., Chapman, T., Maklakov, A.A. (2021) Transgenerational fitness effects of lifespan extension by dietary restriction in Caenorhabditis elegans. Proc R Soc B, https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2021.0701
  • Lind, M.I., Zwoinska, M.K., Andersson, J., Carlsson, H., Krieg, T., Larva, T., Maklakov, A.A. (2020) Environmental variation mediates the evolution of anticipatory parental effects. Evolution Letters, online, https://doi.org/10.1002/evl3.177
  • Özbey, N.P., Imanikia, S., Krueger, C., Hardege, I., Morud Lekholm, J., Sheng, M., Schafer, W.R., Casanueva, M.O., Taylor, R.C. (2020). Tyramine Acts Downstream of Neuronal XBP-1s to Coordinate Inter-Tissue UPRER Activation and Behavior in C. elegans. Developmental Cell, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.devcel.2020.10.024
  • Zhang, Q., Tian, Y. (2022) Molecular insights into the transgenerational inheritance of stress memory. Journal of Genetics and Genomics, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jgg.2021.11.015

Key Information

  • This studentship has been shortlisted for funding under the UKRI NERC DLA funding scheme and will commence on 1 October 2025. The closing date for applications is 23:59 on 8th January 2025.
  • Successful candidates who meet UKRI’s eligibility criteria will be awarded a fully-funded studentship, which covers fees, maintenance stipend (£19,237 p.a. for 2024/25) and research funding. A limited number of studentships are available for international applicants, with the difference between 'home' and 'international' fees being waived by the registering university. Please note however that ARIES funding does not cover additional costs associated with relocation to, and living in, the UK, such as visa costs or the health surcharge.
  • ARIES postgradute researcher (PGRs) benefit from bespoke graduate training and ARIES provides £2,500 to every student for access to external training, travel and conferences, on top of all Research Costs associated with the project. Excellent applicants from quantitative disciplines with limited experience in environmental sciences may be considered for an additional 3-month stipend to take advanced-level courses.
  • ARIES is committed to equality, diversity, widening participation and inclusion in all areas of its operation. We encourage enquiries and applications from all sections of the community regardless of gender, ethnicity, disability, age, sexual orientation and transgender status. Academic qualifications are considered alongside non-academic experience, and our recruitment process considers potential with the same weighting as past experience.
  • All ARIES studentships may be undertaken on a part-time or full-time basis. International applicants should check whether there are any conditions of visa or imigration permission that preclude part-time study. All advertised project proposals have been developed with consideration of a safe, inclusive, and appropriate research and fieldwork environment with respect to protected characteristics. If you have any concerns please contact us.
  • For further information, please contact the supervisor. To apply for this Studentship follow the instructions at the bottom of the page or click the 'apply now' link.
  • ARIES is required by our funders to collect Equality and Diversity Information from all of our applicants. The information you provide will be used solely for monitoring and statistical purposes; it will remain confidential, and will be stored on the UEA sharepoint server. Data will not be shared with those involved in making decisions on the award of Studentships, and will have no influence on the success of your application. It will only be shared outside of this group in an anonymised and aggregated form. You will be ask to complete the form by the University to which you apply.
  • If funded under the BBSRC-NERC DLA scheme, ARIES studentships will be subject to UKRI terms and conditions. Postgraduate Researchers are expected to live within reasonable distance of their host organisation for the duration of their studentship. See https://www.ukri.org/publications/terms-and-conditions-for-training-funding/ for more information

Apply Now

Apply via the  University of East Anglia application portal