Nath, Bimalendu B.

Paluzzi, Jean-Paul

Pflüger, Hans-Joachim

Thorat, Leena

English

Institutional Repository of the Freie Universität Berlin

Editorial: Insects and changingenvironments: Emergingperspectives on abiotic stresstolerance mechanismsLeena Thorat1*†, Jean-Paul Paluzzi1, Hans-Joachim Pflüger2‡ andBimalendu B. Nath3,41Department of Biology, York University, Toronto, ON, Canada, 2Institute of Biology, Neurobiology, FreieUniversität Berlin, Berlin, Germany, 3Stress Biology Research Laboratory, Department of Zoology,Savitribai Phule Pune University, Pune, India, 4MIE-SPPU Institute of Higher Education, Doha, QatarKEYWORDSinsects, climate change, microplastics, clines, adaptation, physiology, metabolismEditorial on the Research TopicInsects and changing environments: Emerging perspectives on abioticstress tolerance mechanismsGiven the enormous and diverse levels of stressors circulating in our environments,living systems, at any given stage of their life cycle are exposed to singular stress factors ora combination of stressors acting on them simultaneously. In this context, stress-homeostatic processes have been central to the field of Stress Response Biology.Among small animals, and as occupants of varied ecological niches, insects exhibit adiverse range of survival tactics. An array of impressive organismal- and cellular-levelstrategies, and defence machinery enable insect responses against potential stress-induceddamages, thereby ensuring their survival and propagation even under challengingconditions.The field of stress response biology has gained rapid attention in the past fewdecades, with growing evidence and warnings that our environments are changing.Over the years, insects as representative animal models have served as reliable andtractable model systems to better understand and predict the impacts of changingenvironments (e.g., Thorat and Nath, 2018). This Research Topic was thereforedesigned to highlight contributions that investigate meaningful questions relevant toinsect abiotic stress tolerance mechanisms and the creative approaches utilized to addressthose questions.There were three original research articles and one review published in this issue thatcover representative insects from various orders, namely, Coleoptera, Diptera, Hemiptera,Hymenoptera, and Orthoptera. These contributions provide an engaging overview of theadaptation profiles of various insect species and their survival responses to habitat-specificstress conditions. This Research Topic collates recent trends in insect stress biology atthe organismal-, behavioural-, cellular, physiological- and molecular-levels usingmultidisciplinary approaches and cutting-edge tools and techniques.OPEN ACCESSEDITED AND REVIEWED BYSylvia Anton,Institut National de recherche pourl’agriculture, l’alimentation etl’environnement (INRAE), France*CORRESPONDENCELeena Thorat,leenathorat@gmail.com†PRESENT ADDRESSLeena Thorat,Environment and Climate Change,Toronto, ON, Canada‡Deceased authorSPECIALTY SECTIONThis article was submittedto Invertebrate Physiology,a section of the journalFrontiers in PhysiologyRECEIVED 21 March 2023ACCEPTED 23 March 2023PUBLISHED 12 April 2023CITATIONThorat L, Paluzzi J-P, Pflüger H-J andNath BB (2023), Editorial: Insects andchanging environments: Emergingperspectives on abiotic stresstolerance mechanisms.Front. Physiol. 14:1191318.doi: 10.3389/fphys.2023.1191318COPYRIGHT© 2023 Thorat, Paluzzi, Pflüger and Nath.This is an open-access article distributedunder the terms of the CreativeCommons Attribution License (CC BY).The use, distribution or reproduction inother forums is permitted, provided theoriginal author(s) and the copyrightowner(s) are credited and that the originalpublication in this journal is cited, inaccordance with accepted academicpractice. No use, distribution orreproduction is permitted which does notcomply with these terms.Frontiers in Physiology frontiersin.org01TYPE EditorialPUBLISHED 12 April 2023DOI 10.3389/fphys.2023.1191318Khurshid et al. report noteworthy findings on the critical roleof antioxidant enzymes and Heat-Shock Protein (HSP) genes inthe management of redox homeostasis under heat-inflictedoxidative damage in the green peach aphid, Myzus persicae.Cause-effect relations of thermal sensitivity in insects has beenan important research area, and this study unravels the impliedpotential of insect stress biology research in the management ofthis highly adaptable and polyphagous insect pest that burdensthe agricultural industry.Fudlosid et al. present new insights on the effects of microplastic-based diets administered in the tropical house cricket, Gryllodessigillatus. This study examined whether supplementing a standarddiet with either polyethylene microplastic beads (75–105 μm) orpolyethylene terephthalate microfibers (<5 mm) would affectselected life history characteristics. Interestingly, while microplasticbeads did not have a significant impact on growth and development ofG. sigillatus, polyethylene fibers were detrimental to the cricket. Insummary, the plausible physiological mechanisms for sex-specificimpacts of microplastics are yet unclear. However, futureinvestigations examining if and how microplastics are transformedin the insect gut will reinforce our foundational knowledge to deviseapproaches for tackling the global concerns of plastic pollution.Menail et al. outline an excellent comparative account of thermalsensitivity and mitochondrial metabolic flexibility in three flying insectspecies, Apis mellifera, Drosophila melanogaster and Leptinotarsadecemlineata. By measuring oxygen consumption in permeabilizedflight muscles from these three species, the authors established howthermal stress is tolerated under conditions involving different oxidativesubstrates. In conclusion, differential mitochondrial plasticity acrossinsect species demonstrated in this study considerably expands ourunderstanding of the survival dynamics and resilience to thermalstress in some insects over others.Mayekar et al. offer a comprehensive analysis of the use of clinalvariation as a promising tool to monitor population-level correlationsbetween active genomic responses to climate change. Drawing fromcase studies in Drosophila, a cosmopolitan and genetically amenablemodel, this review highlights interesting broader-scale comparisons ofgenetic and plastic traits that are not currently well understood. Theauthors shed light on clinal shift patterns to explain how organismsacross latitudes/altitudes are responding to climate change. Takentogether, this review proposes the role of clinal variation studies tocomplement measures of mitigating climate change.ConclusionOverall, this Research Topic provides original research data andan in-depth review that enlighten us on comparative stress-inducedadaptive frameworks in various insect species. Additionally, weanticipate that findings from these studies will pave the way fortranslational research as well as help leverage the implied potentialof the field of stress response biology in supporting evidence-basedpolicymaking in climate change management and mitigation, andbiodiversity conservation.As co-editors, we enjoyed working with the authors and wesincerely thank them for submitting their interesting work to thistopic Research Topic.With more exciting discoveries awaited for the future, weenvisage that this Research Topic will serve as a foundation tostimulate further interest in gaining cross-axes insights fromevolutionary, cellular, eco-physiological and biochemicalperspectives on insects.We hope our readers will enjoy this work, as much as we enjoyedputting it together for you!Dedication statementThis Research Topic is dedicated to the memory of Prof. Hans-Joachim Pflüger who passed away on 25 January 2022.Prof. Pflüger, whom we dearly called ‘Jochen’ was a Professorof Functional Neuroanatomy/Neurobiology at Freie UniversitätBerlin, Germany. As one of the founding members and one of thepresidents of the German Neuroscience Society, Jochen was abackbone to the Neurosciences community in Germany andEurope.Jochen’s research focused on how sensory feedbackmechanisms, neuronal networks, and neuromodulation lead tomeaningful behavior in insects and other arthropods. When notin the lab, Jochen was a keen birder, loved nature and enjoyed takingstudents to field excursions.Apart from his professional credentials, Jochen was a wonderfulhuman being who touched the lives of many! As his co-editors, wethank Jochen for his unwavering support, generous scientific andtechnical advice and for co-editing the submissions published in thisResearch Topic Research Topic.Author contributionsLT led the drafting of this editorial, and revised and finalisedthe document for submission. J-PP and BBN reviewed thedraft and provided input and feedback. All authorscontributed to this editorial and approved the final versionfor submission. This Research Topic was originally proposedand set up by LT. All the co-editors, J-PP, BN, and the deceasedH-JP supported the development of the proposed ResearchTopic. All the editors worked collaboratively to decideacceptance/rejection criteria for submitted manuscripts, withinput from peer reviewers.AcknowledgmentsWe are grateful to the reviewers for their time, and their valuablescientific feedback on the submissions. Thanks also to the editorialstaff, whose support is very much appreciated.Conflict of interestThe authors declare that the research was conductedin the absence of any commercial or financial relationships thatcould be construed as a potential conflict of interest.Frontiers in Physiology frontiersin.org02Thorat et al. 10.3389/fphys.2023.1191318Publisher’s noteAll claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authorsand do not necessarily represent those of their affiliatedorganizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and thereviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article, orclaim that may be made by its manufacturer, is not guaranteed orendorsed by the publisher.ReferenceThorat, L., and Nath, B. B. (2018). Insects with survival kits for desiccation toleranceunder extreme water deficits. Front. Physiol. 9, 1843. doi:10.3389/fphys.2018.01843Frontiers in Physiology frontiersin.org03Thorat et al. 10.3389/fphys.2023.1191318

Editorial: Insects and changing environments: Emerging perspectives on abiotic stress tolerance mechanisms

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Editorial: Insects and changing environments: Emerging perspectives on abiotic stress tolerance mechanisms

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