Avian ecological epigenetics: pitfalls and promises

B Sepers, K van den Heuvel, M Lindner… - Journal of …, 2019 - Springer
Epigenetic mechanisms can alter gene expression without a change in the nucleotide
sequence and are increasingly recognized as important mechanisms that can generate …

[HTML][HTML] The epigenetics of animal personality

K van Oers, K van den Heuvel, B Sepers - Neuroscience & Biobehavioral …, 2023 - Elsevier
Animal personality, consistent individual differences in behaviour, is an important concept
for understanding how individuals vary in how they cope with environmental challenges. In …

Variation in DNA methylation in avian nestlings is largely determined by genetic effects

B Sepers, RS Chen, M Memelink… - Molecular Biology …, 2023 - academic.oup.com
As environmental fluctuations are becoming more common, organisms need to rapidly adapt
to anthropogenic, climatic, and ecological changes. Epigenetic modifications and DNA …

Genome‐wide variation in DNA methylation is associated with stress resilience and plumage brightness in a wild bird

CC Taff, L Campagna, MN Vitousek - Molecular Ecology, 2019 - Wiley Online Library
Individuals often differ in their ability to cope with challenging environmental and social
conditions. Evidence from model systems suggests that patterns of DNA methylation are …

Developmental conditions modulate DNA methylation at the glucocorticoid receptor gene with cascading effects on expression and corticosterone levels in zebra …

B Jimeno, M Hau, E Gómez-Díaz, S Verhulst - Scientific Reports, 2019 - nature.com
Developmental conditions can impact the adult phenotype via epigenetic changes that
modulate gene expression. In mammals, methylation of the glucocorticoid receptor gene …

Developmental stress does not induce genome‐wide DNA methylation changes in wild great tit (Parus major) nestlings

B Sepers, AC Mateman, F Gawehns… - Molecular …, 2023 - Wiley Online Library
The environment experienced during early life is a crucial factor in the life of many
organisms. This early life environment has been shown to have profound effects on …

Epigenetics and Early Life Stress: Experimental Brood Size Affects DNA Methylation in Great Tits (Parus major)

B Sepers, JAM Erven, F Gawehns, VN Laine… - Frontiers in Ecology …, 2021 - frontiersin.org
Early developmental conditions are known to have life-long effects on an individual's
behavior, physiology and fitness. In altricial birds, a majority of these conditions, such as the …

Introduced house sparrows (Passer domesticus) have greater variation in DNA methylation than native house sparrows

ME Lauer, H Kodak, T Albayrak, MR Lima… - Journal of …, 2024 - academic.oup.com
As a highly successful introduced species, house sparrows (Passer domesticus) respond
rapidly to their new habitats, generating phenotypic patterns across their introduced range …

Dynamic changes in DNA methylation during postnatal development in zebra finches Taeniopygia guttata exposed to different temperatures

EL Sheldon, AW Schrey, LL Hurley… - Journal of Avian …, 2020 - Wiley Online Library
Epigenetic changes associated with early life conditions are known to play a significant role
in shaping the adult phenotype. Studies of DNA methylation in wild animals are lacking, yet …

Associations between DNA methylation and telomere length during early life: Insight from wild zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata)

EL Sheldon, R Ton, W Boner, P Monaghan… - Molecular …, 2022 - Wiley Online Library
Telomere length and DNA methylation (DNAm) are two promising biomarkers of biological
age. Environmental factors and life history traits are known to affect variation in both these …