Data from: Transcriptome analysis of predator- and prey-induced phenotypic plasticity in the Hokkaido salamander (Hynobius retardatus)

Predator- and prey-induced phenotypic plasticity is widely observed among
amphibian species. Although ecological factors inducing diverse phenotypic
responses have been extensively characterized, we know little about the
molecular bases of variation in phenotypic plasticity. Larvae of the
Hokkaido salamander, Hynobius retardatus, exhibit two distinct morphs: the
presence of their prey, Rana pirica tadpoles, induces a broad-headed
attack morph, and the presence of predatory dragonfly nymphs (Aeshna
nigroflava) induces a defence morph with enlarged external gills and a
high tail. To compare the genes involved in predator- and prey-induced
phenotypic plasticity, we carried out a de novo transcriptome analysis of
Hokkaido salamander larvae exposed to either prey or predator individuals.
First, we found that the number of genes involved in the expression of the
defence morph was approximately five times the number involved in the
expression of the attack morph. This result is consistent with the fact
that the predator-induced plasticity involves more drastic morphological
changes than the prey-induced plasticity. Second, we found that particular
sets of genes were upregulated during the induction of both the attack and
defence morphs, but others were specific to the expression of one or the
other morph. Because both shared and unique molecular mechanisms were used
in the expression of each morph, the evolution of a new plastic phenotype
might involve both the co-option of pre-existing molecular mechanisms and
the acquisition of novel regulatory mechanisms.