Physiological Response to Environmental Stressors in Invertebrates

The growing pressure of anthropogenic activities on ecosystems and the ongoing climate change, as well as natural phenomena, influence the set of organisms organized in communities and ecosystems. All organisms, subjected to the influence of specific environmental agents that deeply affect the physiology of individual species, react to adversity. Sometimes these variations are sudden, overcoming the reaction capacities of individual species such as the possibility of homeostasis by organisms and the level of resilience of entire communities. In the context of organism responses to environmental stressors, here we will focus on the invertebrates’ physiological processes, disturbed homeostasis, and altered metabolic processes that ultimately may impact on over-organismal levels of biological organization and may lead to significant changes within ecosystems.

Animals may be affected by various stressors such as climate change, altered light conditions, exposure to heavy metals, persistent organic pollutants, pesticides or drugs. Invertebrates, which are usually smaller than vertebrates, have a smaller radius to escape unfavorable conditions. Therefore, physiological adaptations to unfavorable conditions are crucial for their survival. These physiological adaptations attract the attention of scientists, on one hand using invertebrates as model organisms to understand the mechanisms of adaptation, and on the other hand to identify potential targets for invertebrate pest management.

In this Research Topic, we want to discuss the wide range of physiological responses, given by invertebrates, as a response to environmental stressors. We invite review papers and original research on the following themes but is not limited to them:

● Global warming
● Cold, high temperatures
● Heavy and light metals
● Synthetic pesticides
● Natural substances used in plant protection
● Pharmaceuticals
● Dioxins and other persistent organic pollutants