Epigenetic memory effects in forest trees: A victory of “Michurinian biology ?

Abstract

The study reviews trait inheritance, which is in contradiction with the rules of Mendelian genetics, and which was object of controversies among biologists (sometimes with grave political consequences) in the USSR and Soviet-controlled countries in the 1930s–1960s. Carryover or memory effects of the climate, to which maternal trees are exposed during seed development, on phenological behavior and other adaptively relevant traits of their offspring in conifers are mentioned; similar effects are associated with the germination and early growth environment. Molecular mechanisms underlying these effects include covalent modifications of DNA or DNA-associated proteins (cytosine methylation, various types of histone modifications), micro-RNAs and small interfering RNAs. Tools for the identification of these modifications are reviewed with a focus on cytosine methylation, along with an overview of the hitherto knowledge on the occurrence of DNA modifications in forest trees. The practical implications of epigenetic inheritance in forest trees are discussed with the focus on the adaptation to climate change and legislation on forest reproductive materials.