Protective multi-stressor interactions in the Anthropocene: Key considerations for investigating cross-tolerance in a...

Area of Science:

• Ecology and Environmental Science
• Conservation Biology
• Stress Physiology

Background:

• Organisms in the Anthropocene face increasing, unpredictable multiple stressors.
• Stressors can interact negatively, but beneficial cross-protection can enhance resilience.
• Cross-protection involves one stressor increasing tolerance to another via shared mechanisms.

Purpose of the Study:

• To outline key considerations for investigating cross-protection in conservation.
• To highlight the importance of understanding cross-protection for predicting environmental change impacts.
• To inform conservation strategies for enhancing species resilience.

Main Methods:

• Review and synthesis of existing knowledge on cross-protection.
• Identification of 10 critical factors for studying cross-protection in conservation.
• Emphasis on integrating omics and meta-analyses for mechanistic understanding.

Main Results:

• Cross-protection can mitigate negative impacts of multiple stressors.
• Key factors include stressor intensity, timing, species/sex-specific responses, and temporal variability.
• Mechanistic understanding is crucial for accurate predictions.

Conclusions:

• Cross-protective interactions can be leveraged for effective conservation management.
• Enhanced understanding of cross-protection can improve species resilience to environmental change.
• This research guides future directions in conservation policy and practice for biodiversity preservation.