Heat shock protein gene expression varies among populations but does not strongly track recent environmental conditions: implications for biomarker development

Global temperatures are rising, and scientists are mobilizing to uncover which birds are most affected by the problem of heat. Heat shock proteins (HSPs), for example, can shed light on this issue because they prevent damage and promote recovery from heat. However, few studies have investigated the relationship between HSPs and heat outside of experimental contexts. Here, we ask whether natural variation in HSP gene expression can serve as a biomarker of recent ambient conditions in wild nestling tree swallows (Tachycineta bicolor). We focused on HSP90AA1 because this HSP increases mRNA abundance in avian blood after acute heat. Using blood samples collected across ten degrees of latitude, we tested for population differences in constitutive HSP90AA1 gene expression in 12-day-old nestlings. To quantify the specific time period over which ambient conditions best predicted variation in HSP gene expression, we used a climate window analysis, evaluating the predictive value of maximum tempe..., , # Heat shock protein gene expression varies among populations but does not strongly track recent environmental conditions: implications for biomarker development

Dataset DOI: [10.5061/dryad.tdz08kq94](10.5061/dryad.tdz08kq94)

### Author information 

| Name  | Affiliation  | email  | ORCID  |
| :----------------------- | :----------- | :----------------------------------------------------------- | :------------------- |
| Mary J. Woodruff  | 1,2,3 | [[e-mail]](mailto:[e-mail])  | 0000-0003-0475-3811  |
| Sarah E. Wolf  | 1,2,4  | [[e-mail]](mailto:[e-mail]) | 0000-0002-2620-8999  |
| Ethan D. Clotfelter  | 5 | [[e-mail]](mailto:[e-mail])  | 0000-0002-6711-3873  |
| Elizabeth P. Derryberry  | 6  | [[e-mail]](mailto:[e-mail])  ...,