About this Research Topic
Marine and freshwater environments are negatively impacted by both natural and anthropogenic stressors. These stressors include extreme weather events due to climate change, fluctuations in water and atmospheric temperature, hypoxic and anoxic conditions, and chemical pollution. Stressors are mitigated via molecular and physiological compensation to prevent adverse outcomes. The immune system is sensitive to both acute and chronic exposures to environmental stressors, which can lead to autoimmune disorders, chronic inflammation, and a weakened immune system. Hence, this may render some individuals more susceptible to infection or coinfection with pathogens and parasites, contributing to higher infection and disease levels relative to unexposed animals.
Understanding how aquatic organisms adjust their immune systems to cope with increased environmental pressure has significant implications for the conservation of species and aquaculture. This is especially important in the face of climate change, which causes shifts in environmental factors such as temperature, oxygen concentration, pH, and salinity, leading to higher mortality events of aquatic species. This special issue highlights research that addresses the causes, mechanisms, and mitigation of environmental stressors impacting the immune systems of aquatic animals. We invite studies that reveal molecular, physiological, and behavioral adaptations of aquatic animals to modulate the immune system and protect themselves against environmental stressors. Studies leveraging molecular approaches (i.e. transcriptomics, proteomics, metabolomics, lipidomics, and epigenetics), computational biology, or artificial intelligence to discern molecular/physiological modifications in response to environmental stressors are encouraged.
Understanding how aquatic organisms adjust their immune systems to cope with increased environmental pressure has significant implications for the conservation of species and aquaculture. This is especially important in the face of climate change, which causes shifts in environmental factors such as temperature, oxygen concentration, pH, and salinity, leading to higher mortality events of aquatic species. This special issue highlights research that addresses the causes, mechanisms, and mitigation of environmental stressors impacting the immune systems of aquatic animals. We invite studies that reveal molecular, physiological, and behavioral adaptations of aquatic animals to modulate the immune system and protect themselves against environmental stressors. Studies leveraging molecular approaches (i.e. transcriptomics, proteomics, metabolomics, lipidomics, and epigenetics), computational biology, or artificial intelligence to discern molecular/physiological modifications in response to environmental stressors are encouraged.
Keywords: aquatic animal immunology, environmental stressors, immune systems
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