Nadia Aubin-Horth | Université Laval (original) (raw)

Papers by Nadia Aubin-Horth

The tendency of salmon, Salmo salar, to return from the sea to the river of hatching and form 'lo... more The tendency of salmon, Salmo salar, to return from the sea to the river of hatching and form 'local populations' has apparently been known for a long time (Calderwood 1908). Writing in 1653, Izaak Walton described how juveniles marked with ribbons tied to their tails were later recaptured as adults in their home river. Since no two rivers are completely identical, salmon returning to spawn in different rivers will, with time, give rise to different strains or 'races'(Huntsman 1941).

Hormones and behavior, 2011

In several species, individuals from the same population behave differently from each other. A fu... more In several species, individuals from the same population behave differently from each other. A functional link between variation in personality traits and the stress response has been suggested by studies in artificial selection lines in fish, birds and mammals. The aim of this study was to test whether the expression of genes involved in the stress response co-varies with personality traits in a natural population. Four personality traits, excreted cortisol level and brain expression of six candidate genes (CRF, CRF-R2, POMC1, GR1, GR2, MR) were measured in non-stressed wild-caught threespine sticklebacks (Gasterosteus aculeatus). We found correlations between variation in personality traits and variation in the expression of genes involved in the stress response. Aggressiveness was negatively correlated with cortisol levels. Boldness and aggressiveness formed a behavioural syndrome and were both positively correlated with brain expression of glucocorticoid receptors (GR1 and GR2). Boldness and exploration were positively correlated with expression of POMC1 but not with each other. Our results are compatible with a model that suggests that the aggressiveness-boldness behavioural syndrome could be the consequence of a physiological pleiotropic effect of glucocorticoid receptors, which are involved in the stress response and behaviour variation.

Molecular Ecology, 2009

Phenotypic plasticity is the development of different phenotypes from a single genotype, dependin... more Phenotypic plasticity is the development of different phenotypes from a single genotype, depending on the environment. Such plasticity is a pervasive feature of life, is observed for various traits and is often argued to be the result of natural selection. A thorough study of phenotypic plasticity should thus include an ecological and an evolutionary perspective. Recent advances in large-scale gene expression technology make it possible to also study plasticity from a molecular perspective, and the addition of these data will help answer long-standing questions about this widespread phenomenon. In this review, we present examples of integrative studies that illustrate the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying plastic traits, and show how new techniques will grow in importance in the study of these plastic molecular processes. These techniques include: (i) heterologous hybridization to DNA microarrays; (ii) next generation sequencing technologies applied to transcriptomics; (iii) techniques for studying the function of noncoding small RNAs; and (iv) proteomic tools. We also present recent studies on genetic model systems that uncover how environmental cues triggering different plastic responses are sensed and integrated by the organism. Finally, we describe recent work on changes in gene expression in response to an environmental cue that persist after the cue is removed. Such long-term responses are made possible by epigenetic molecular mechanisms, including DNA methylation. The results of these current studies help us outline future avenues for the study of plasticity.

Current Zoology, 2012

Among-population differences in morphology and behaviors such as boldness have been shown to co-v... more Among-population differences in morphology and behaviors such as boldness have been shown to co-vary with ecological conditions, including predation regime. However, between-and within-population covariation of predator defense morphology with variation in behaviors relevant to ecology and evolution (boldness, exploration, activity, sociability and aggressiveness, often defined as personality traits when they are consistent across time and contexts) have never been quantified together in a single study in juvenile fish from populations found in contrasting environments. We measured predator defense morphology differences between adults from two freshwater populations of threespine sticklebacks with different ecological conditions. We then quantified five behaviors in juveniles from both populations raised in a common environment. Wild-caught adults showed significant differences in predator defense morphology. One population had significantly lower lateral plate number, shorter dorsal spine, pelvic spine and pelvic girdle. Furthermore, 61% of individuals from that population showed an absence of pelvic spine and girdle. At the population level, we found that differences in defense morphology in adults between the two lakes were coupled with differences in behaviors in juveniles raised in a common environment. Levels of activity, aggressiveness and boldness were higher in juveniles from the population lacking predator defense structures. At the individual level, anti-predator morphology of adult females could not predict their offspring's behavior, but juvenile coloration predicted individual boldness in a population-specific manner. Our results suggest that ecological conditions, as reflected in adult predator defense morphology, also affect juvenile behavior in threespine sticklebacks, resulting in trait co-specialization, and that there is a genetic or epigenetic component to these behavioral differences [Current Zoology 58 (1): 53-65, 2012].

… of the Royal …, 2005

Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) undergo spectacular marine migrations before homing to spawn in nat... more Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) undergo spectacular marine migrations before homing to spawn in natal rivers. However, males that grow fastest early in life can adopt an alternative 'sneaker' tactic by maturing earlier at greatly reduced size without leaving freshwater. While the ultimate evolutionary causes have been well studied, virtually nothing is known about the molecular bases of this developmental plasticity. We investigate the nature and extent of coordinated molecular changes that accompany such a fundamental transformation by comparing the brain transcription profiles of wild mature sneaker males to age-matched immature males (future large anadromous males) and immature females. Of the ca. 3000 genes surveyed, 15% are differentially expressed in the brains of the two male types. These genes are involved in a wide range of processes, including growth, reproduction and neural plasticity. Interestingly, despite the potential for wide variation in gene expression profiles among individuals sampled in nature, consistent patterns of gene expression were found for individuals of the same reproductive tactic. Notably, gene expression patterns in immature males were different both from immature females and sneakers, indicating that delayed maturation and sea migration by immature males, the 'default' life cycle, may actually result from an active inhibition of development into a sneaker.

Molecular …, 2007

The molecular mechanisms underlying complex social behaviours such as dominance are largely unkno... more The molecular mechanisms underlying complex social behaviours such as dominance are largely unknown. Studying the cooperatively breeding African cichlid Neolamprologus pulcher , we show that dominant females were similar to dominant males in dominance behaviour, high testosterone levels and brain arginine vasotocin expression (a neuropeptide involved in vertebrate territorial, reproductive and social behaviours) compared to subordinate helpers, but had lower levels of 11-ketotestosterone than males. Furthermore, brain gene expression profiles of dominant females were most similar to those of the males (independent of social rank). Dominant breeder females are masculinized at the molecular and hormonal level while being at the same time reproductively competent, suggesting a modular organization of molecular and endocrine functions, allowing for sex-specific regulation.

BMC genomics, 2004

Background: Unravelling the path from genotype to phenotype, as it is influenced by an organism's... more Background: Unravelling the path from genotype to phenotype, as it is influenced by an organism's environment, is one of the central goals in biology. Gene expression profiling by means of microarrays has become very prominent in this endeavour, although resources exist only for relatively few model systems. As genomics has matured into a comparative research program, expression profiling now also provides a powerful tool for non-traditional model systems to elucidate the molecular basis of complex traits.

Journal of Heredity, 2005

Trends in Ecology & …, 2012

Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology-Part A: …, 2009

Understanding the molecular mechanisms underlying fish behavior is of fundamental importance to f... more Understanding the molecular mechanisms underlying fish behavior is of fundamental importance to further our understanding of the proximate and ultimate causes of variation in this trait and informs us on issues of animal husbandry, conservation, and welfare. One way to approach this question is to study variation in gene expression in individuals exhibiting different behaviors and relating it to variations at other phenotypic levels in an organismic, ecological and evolutionary context. Here we review studies that have shown that the use of such an integrative and genomics approach is greatly useful for shedding new light on the mechanisms of behaviors as diverse as social dominance, mate choice, reproduction and migration. We present studies that use functional genomics tools and integrate several biological levels of organization, including transcription variation, which are important in the context of integrative biology and genomics of fish behavior. We review studies of phenotype-level variation in transcription but also studies that focus on variation at the individual-level. Dissecting the molecular bases of among-individual variation in behavior, including the study of variation in temperament (behavioral syndrome / coping style) within and among populations, will gain importance in the field in the years to come.

Journal of Experimental …, 2008

Comparative Biochemistry and …, 2012

Human activities increase the occurrence of aquatic hypoxia (low dissolved oxygen) globally. In f... more Human activities increase the occurrence of aquatic hypoxia (low dissolved oxygen) globally. In fishes, short term hypoxia impairs multiple stages of reproduction (e.g., behavior, hormones, development), but no studies have investigated a species that lives and reproduces under hypoxia. This study examines the effects of hypoxia on sex hormones in the mouth brooding African cichlid Pseudocrenilabrus multicolor victoriae. Non-invasive measures of testosterone and estradiol levels in females were collected across the reproductive cycle in the laboratory, and at the time of capture in the field. In the laboratory, hormone levels were higher during pre-brooding (T = 1.06, E2 = 1.62 pg/mL/h) than brooding (T = 0.61, E2 = 0.34 pg/mL/h) or postbrooding (T = 0.53, E2 = 0.51 pg/mL/h) phases, but did not differ between hypoxic (1.2 ± 0.0 mg/L) and normoxic (7.3 ± 0.1 mg/L) populations. In the field, females were sampled from one low and one high oxygen population in two regions in Uganda (Mpanga River, Nabugabo Region). In both regions, hypoxic populations exhibited higher levels of testosterone than well-oxygenated populations, although there was no population level difference in estradiol levels. Hypoxic sites were also characterized by a higher testosterone/estradiol ratio and a lower proportion of brooding females. These results provide field evidence of hypoxiamediated endocrine disruption in a fish species that experiences lifelong hypoxia.

Hormones and behavior, 2012

Androgens are known to be involved in reproductive behaviours including courtship and aggression.... more Androgens are known to be involved in reproductive behaviours including courtship and aggression. According to the Challenge Hypothesis, androgen activity upregulates male reproductive behaviour seasonally and also modulates short term adaptation of these behaviours in response to social context. In the weakly electric fish, Apteronotus leptorhynchus, 11-ketotestosterone (11-KT) has been previously implicated in the regulation of electrocommunication behaviours that are believed to have roles in both aggression and courtship. Changes in male 11-KT levels were quantified using a non-invasive measurement technique alongside changes in electrocommunication behaviour following environmental cues that simulated the onset of the breeding season. Males showed an increase in mean electric organ discharge frequency (EODf), which is consistent with earlier results showing a female preference for high EODf. A subset of males with high initial EODfs showed increases in both 11-KT and EODf, which provides support for an EODf-based dominance hierarchy in this species. Males housed in social conditions and exposed to breeding conditioning also showed higher overall electric organ discharge frequencies and 11-KT compared to males housed in isolation. Evidence is presented that another type of electrocommunication signal previously implicated in courtship may also serve as an inter-male signal of submission. Our results are consistent with earlier observations that electrocommunication signals produced during inter-male aggression serve in deterring attacks, and their pattern of production further suggested the formation of a dominance hierarchy.► We used a non-invasive method for repeated 11-K-testosterone measurement in a weakly electric fish. ► Breeding season conditions led to increases in 11-KT and in the frequency of electric organ discharge in males. ► Males kept in isolation had lower 11-KT levels and EOD frequencies than fish held in groups. ► A communication signal previously thought to serve in courtship may also serve as a signal of submission.

General and Comparative …, 2012

General and comparative …, 2009

How genomic expression differs as a function of life history variation is largely unknown. Atlant... more How genomic expression differs as a function of life history variation is largely unknown. Atlantic salmon exhibits extreme alternative life histories. We defined the gene-expression signatures of wild-caught salmon at two different life stages by comparing the brain expression profiles of mature sneaker males and immature males, and early migrants and late migrants. In addition to life-stage-specific signatures, we discovered a surprisingly large gene set that was differentially regulated-at similar magnitudes, yet in opposite direction-in both life history transitions. We suggest that this co-variation is not a consequence of many independent cellular and molecular switches in the same direction but rather represents the molecular equivalent of a physiological shift orchestrated by one or very few master regulators.

… of the Royal …, 2010

Consistent individual differences in behaviour, aka personality, pose several evolutionary questi... more Consistent individual differences in behaviour, aka personality, pose several evolutionary questions. For example, it is difficult to explain within-individual consistency in behaviour because behavioural plasticity is often advantageous. In addition, selection erodes heritable behavioural variation that is related to fitness, therefore we wish to know the mechanisms that can maintain between-individual variation in behaviour. In this paper, we argue that whole genome expression data can reveal new insights into the proximate mechanisms underlying personality, as well as its evolutionary consequences. After introducing the basics of whole genome expression analysis, we show how whole genome expression data can be used to understand whether behaviours in different contexts are affected by the same molecular mechanisms. We suggest strategies for using the power of genomics to understand what maintains behavioural variation, to study the evolution of behavioural correlations and to compare personality traits across diverse organisms.

Molecular ecology, 2007

Ecological genomics is a research field that aims to determine how a genome or a population of ge... more Ecological genomics is a research field that aims to determine how a genome or a population of genomes interacts with its environment across ecological and evolutionary timescales. This matter was the central theme of the symposium on Ecological Genomics that took place at the First meeting of the Canadian Society for Ecology and Evolution, held at the University of Toronto in May 2007. Through their research on a diverse array of organisms, the various speakers illustrated how ecology and evolution benefit from genomics, and indirectly how genomics can benefit from evolutionary ecology.