Manipulation of a social signal affects DNA methylation of a stress-related gene in a free-living bird.

ABSTRACT: Social status directly affects the health of humans and other animals. Low status individuals receive more antagonistic encounters, have fewer supportive relationships and have worse health outcomes. However, the physiological and cellular processes that mediate the relationship between the social environment and health are incompletely known. Epigenetic regulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, the neuroendocrine pathway that activates in response to stressors, may be one process that is sensitive to the social environment. Here, we experimentally manipulated plumage, a key social signal in female tree swallows (Tachycineta bicolor) and quantified methylation of four genes in the HPA axis before and after treatment. We found that dulling the white breast plumage affecte

SUBMITTER: McNew SM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11418189 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature