Exposure to chemical pollutants can alter the rate and genome‐wide distribution of germline mutations. However, studies measuring the effects of chemical exposure on mutation rates and spectra have not considered the ecological and evolutionary backgrounds of the studied genotypes, which could influence the rates and patterns of germline mutations in altered environments, for example, chemical pollution. Utilising a study of n...

Effective species conservation and management requires comprehensive biomonitoring, enhanced by combining traditional and newer methodologies, such as environmental DNA (eDNA) analyses. A seasonal pulse of spawning adult Atlantic salmon ( Salmo salar ) was detected by normalised eDNA 12S reads from metabarcoding, which facilitated estimation of spatial patterns in salmon biomass. A strong relationship was found between normali...

Grouping/read-across is widely used for predicting the toxicity of data-poor target substance(s) using data-rich source substance(s). While the chemical industry and the regulators recognise its benefits, registration dossiers are often rejected due to weak analogue/category justifications based largely on the structural similarity of source and target substances. Here we demonstrate how multi-omics measurements can improve co...

The assessment of persistence (P), bioaccumulation (B), and toxicity (T) of a chemical is a crucial first step at ensuring chemical safety and is a cornerstone of the European Union’s chemicals regulation REACH (Registration, Evaluation, Authorization, and Restriction of Chemicals). Existing methods for PBT assessment are overly complex and cumbersome, have produced incorrect conclusions, and rely heavily on animal-intensive t...

Natural habitats are exposed to an increasing number of environmental stressors that cause important ecological consequences. However, the multifarious nature of environmental change, the strength and the relative timing of each stressor largely limit our understanding of biological responses to environmental change. In particular, early response to unpredictable environmental change, critical to survival and fitness in later...

Little is known about the role of transcriptomic changes in driving phenotypic evolution in natural populations, particularly in response to anthropogenic environmental change. Previous analyses of Daphnia genotypes separated by centuries of evolution in a lake using methods in resurrection ecology revealed striking genetic and phenotypic shifts that were highly correlated with anthropogenic environmental change, specifically...

For an accurate assessment of the anthropogenic impacts on evolutionary change in natural populations, we need long‐term environmental, genetic and phenotypic data that predate human disturbances. Analysis of c . 1600 years of history chronicled in the sediments of South Center Lake, Minnesota, USA , revealed major environmental changes beginning c . 120 years ago coinciding with the initiation of industrialised agriculture in...

One route to genetic adaptation in a novel environment is the evolution of ecological generalisation. Yet, identifying the cost that a generalist pays for the increased breadth of tolerance has proven elusive. We integrate phenotypic assays with functional genomics to understand how tolerance to a salinity gradient evolves, and we test the relationship between the fitness cost of this generalisation and the cost of transcripti...

After its appearance in 1989, the cladoceran Daphnia lumholtzi rapidly dispersed throughout the southern United States. In the current study, we used allozyme and mitochondrial deoxyribonucleic acid sequence data to infer the past dispersal of this species. Both genetic markers revealed the similarity among all U.S. populations and those from Uganda and Nepal but their divergence from Australian lineages. The extent of genetic...