UPE Seminar - Dissertation Defense Seminar | Britany Morgan, Duke PhD Candidate | The Balance of Parental Effects and Within Generation Plasticity: The Role of Parent and Offspring DNA Methylation on Response to Cues of Neighbor Presence

Phenotypes can be shaped by the environment experienced by both parents and offspring. While the phenomenon of phenotypic plasticity in response to past and present environments has been widely documented, the relative contribution of parents versus progeny experience and the mechanisms underlying this balance remain unknown. Neighbor identity and density have large impacts on phenotypes and fitness of organisms, and neighbor community is particularly important for plant species. My dissertation aims to quantify the relative importance of parent versus offspring environmental cues of neighbor presence across offspring development, mechanisms underlying these effects on offspring phenotype, and the potential adaptive value of plasticity within and across generations in response to neighbors.