Researchers have observed changes in polar bear DNA that may assist the mammals acclimatize to increasingly warm environments. This study is considered to be the primary instance where a statistically significant link has been established between escalating temperatures and evolving DNA in a wild mammal species.
Climate breakdown is threatening the survival of polar bears. Forecasts show that a significant majority of them could vanish by 2050 as their frozen habitat disappears and the weather becomes warmer.
“Genetic material is the blueprint inside every cell, directing how an organism develops and develops,” explained the principal investigator, Dr. Alice Godden. “By examining these bears’ expressed genes to area temperature records, we found that increasing heat appear to be fueling a significant surge in the behavior of transposable elements within the specific area polar bears’ DNA.”
Researchers studied tissue samples taken from Arctic bears in two regions of Greenland and evaluated “jumping genes”: small, movable sections of the genome that can alter how various genes function. The analysis focused on these genetic markers in connection to climate conditions and the corresponding shifts in genetic activity.
As regional weather and nutrition shift due to changes in environment and food supply forced by warming, the DNA of the animals seem to be adapting. The population of bears in the hottest part of the country displayed greater genetic shifts than the communities to the north.
“This result is important because it demonstrates, for the first time, that a unique group of Arctic bears in the warmest part of Greenland are employing ‘mobile genetic elements’ to rapidly modify their own DNA, which might be a essential survival mechanism against melting sea ice,” added Godden.
The climate in the northern area are more frigid and less variable, while in the south-east there is a more temperate and more open water environment, with steep climate variability.
Genetic code in organisms evolve over time, but this process can be accelerated by climate pressure such as a quickly warming climate.
There were some intriguing DNA alterations, such as in regions associated to energy storage, that could aid polar bears persist when food is scarce. Bears in temperate zones had more rough, plant-based diets versus the fatty, seal-based nutrition of northern bears, and the DNA of south-eastern bears seemed to be evolving to this shift.
Godden stated: “Scientists found several genetic hotspots where these jumping genes were highly active, with some found in the critical areas of the genome, implying that the animals are subject to swift, significant genetic changes as they respond to their disappearing icy environment.”
The next step will be to study different Arctic bear groups, of which there are 20 globally, to determine if analogous changes are happening to their DNA.
This study might aid protect the bears from dying out. However, the scientists stressed that it was essential to slow global warming from escalating by cutting the consumption of coal, oil, and gas.
“We cannot be complacent, this provides some promise but does not mean that Arctic bears are at any reduced threat of extinction. It is imperative to be pursuing every action we can to lower greenhouse gas output and slow global warming,” stated Godden.
Lena Hoffmann is a seasoned journalist with a passion for uncovering stories that matter, specializing in German current affairs and digital media trends.
