Invariance and plasticity in the Drosophila melanogaster metabolomic network in response to temperature

• Type of Material: Article
• Authors: Ramkumar Hariharan, University of Washington; Jessica M Hoffman, University of Georgia; Ariel S Thomas, University of Georgia; Quinly A Soltow, Emory University; Dean Jones, Emory University; Daniel E L Promislow, University of Washington
• Language: English
• Date: 2014-12-24
• Publisher: BioMed Central
• Publication Version: Final Published Version
• Copyright Statement: © Hariharan et al.; licensee BioMed Central. 2015
• License: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
• Final Published Version (URL): http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12918-014-0139-6
• Title of Journal or Parent Work: BMC Systems Biology
• ISSN: 1752-0509
• Volume: 8
• Issue: 1
• Start Page: 139
• End Page: 139
• Keywords: SENSITIVITY; FRUIT-FLY; COLD; Science & Technology; Differential coexpression; Networks; RECOVERY; Temperature; Metabolomics; PROFILES; SHOCK-PROTEIN EXPRESSION; STRESS; Life Sciences & Biomedicine; ENVIRONMENTS; Mathematical & Computational Biology; ACCLIMATION; COEXPRESSION; Drosophila melanogaster
• Research Categories: Biology, Physiology; Biology, Microbiology

Abstract

Background Metabolomic responses to extreme thermal stress have recently been investigated in Drosophila melanogaster. However, a network level understanding of metabolomic responses to longer and less drastic temperature changes, which more closely reflect variation in natural ambient temperatures experienced during development and adulthood, is currently lacking. Here we use high-resolution, non-targeted metabolomics to dissect metabolomic changes in D. melanogaster elicited by moderately cool (18°C) or warm (27°C) developmental and adult temperature exposures. Results We find that temperature at which larvae are reared has a dramatic effect on metabolomic network structure measured in adults. Using network analysis, we are able to identify modules that are highly differentially expressed in response to changing developmental temperature, as well as modules whose correlation structure is strongly preserved across temperature. Conclusions Our results suggest that the effect of temperature on the metabolome provides an easily studied and powerful model for understanding the forces that influence invariance and plasticity in biological networks.