EPIGENETICS AND CLIMATE RESILIENCE: UNRAVELING MECHANISMS OF ANIMAL ADAPTATION AND FUTURE CONSERVATION STRATEGIES: A REVIEW

Abstract

Climate change poses unprecedented threats to global biodiversity, demanding rapid adaptive responses from species to survive shifting environmental conditions. While traditional evolutionary processes often operate too slowly to mitigate these threats, epigenetics—heritable changes in gene expression without alterations to the DNA sequence—has emerged as a critical mediator of rapid phenotypic plasticity and adaptation. This review synthesizes current research on epigenetic mechanisms, including DNA methylation, histone modifications, and non-coding RNA regulation, that enable animals to dynamically adjust to climate-induced stressors such as temperature extremes, habitat fragmentation, and ocean acidification. We highlight case studies across diverse taxa, from heattolerant lizards (Phrynosoma) exhibiting methylation-driven expression of heatshock proteins to marine fish demonstrating transgenerational inheritance of salinity-resilient osmoregulatory traits. These examples underscore the role of epigenetics in bridging the gap between immediate environmental challenges and long-term evolutionary adaptation. The review further explores the implications of epigenetic plasticity for conservation biology. Epigenetic diversity, often overlooked in traditional conservation frameworks, may serve as a reservoir for adaptive potential in small or isolated populations. However, critical gaps persist, including uncertainties about the stability of epigenetic modifications across generations, interactions between genetic and epigenetic variation, and the ecological consequences of epigenetic drift in fragmented habitats. Emerging technologies, such as CRISPR-based epigenome editing and bisulfite sequencing, offer novel tools to dissect these mechanisms and predict species resilience. We argue for integrating epigenetics into adaptive conservation strategies, emphasizing interdisciplinary collaboration among molecular biologists, ecologists, and policymakers. Ethical considerations, such as the risks of epigenetic interventions and equitable implementation, are also discussed. By prioritizing longitudinal field studies, cross-taxa comparative analyses, and community-level epigenetic dynamics, future research can unlock the full pote