Abiotic stressors and stress responses: What commonalities appear between species across biological organization levels?

• Published in: Environmental pollution (1987) 2015-07, Vol.202, p.66-77
• Main Authors: Sulmon, Cécile, van Baaren, Joan, Cabello-Hurtado, Francisco, Gouesbet, Gwenola, Hennion, Françoise, Mony, Cendrine, Renault, David, Bormans, Myriam, El Amrani, Abdelhak, Wiegand, Claudia, Gérard, Claudia
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Animals; Biodiversity and Ecology; Biological Evolution; Chemical and thermal stressors; Common stress responses; Ecosystem; Environmental Sciences; Invertebrates; Invertebrates - drug effects; Invertebrates - metabolism; Organization level; Oxidative Stress; Photosynthesis; Photosynthetic organisms; Plants - drug effects; Plants - metabolism; Species Specificity
• ISSN: 0269-7491; 1873-6424
• DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2015.03.013

Organisms are regularly subjected to abiotic stressors related to increasing anthropogenic activities, including chemicals and climatic changes that induce major stresses. Based on various key taxa involved in ecosystem functioning (photosynthetic microorganisms, plants, invertebrates), we review how organisms respond and adapt to chemical- and temperature-induced stresses from molecular to population level. Using field-realistic studies, our integrative analysis aims to compare i) how molecular and physiological mechanisms related to protection, repair and energy allocation can impact life history traits of stressed organisms, and ii) to what extent trait responses influence individual and population responses. Common response mechanisms are evident at molecular and cellular scales but become rather difficult to define at higher levels due to evolutionary distance and environmental complexity. We provide new insights into the understanding of the impact of molecular and cellular responses on individual and population dynamics and assess the potential related effects on communities and ecosystem functioning. •Responses to chemical and thermal stressors are reviewed across organization levels.•Common responses between taxa are evident at the molecular and cellular scales.•At individual level, energy allocation connects species-specific stress responses.•Commonality decreases at higher levels due to increasing environmental complexity. The commonality of stress responses to chemical and thermal stressors among taxa is evident at the molecular and cellular scales but remains unclear at higher levels of organization.