What are the properties of gene regulation in genes whose expression is sensitive to environmental factors (plastic genes), as opposed to genes whose expression is independent of the environment (non-plastic genes)? Empirical and theoretical approaches have consistently revealed that plastic genes possess, on average, a greater number of regulators. Furthermore, theoretical predictions have shown that selection, unlike genetic drift, strongly influences the distribution of network motifs. However, no difference in the frequency of loops and motifs regulating plastic genes compared to non-plastic genes has been observed. The topology of these networks may still be insufficiently understood to fully explain or predict the plasticity of gene expression.
Apolline J R Petit , Anne Genissel , Arnaud Le Rouzic
https://doi.org/10.1093/genetics/iyag009
