In addition to their well-studied contributions to their host’s nutrition, digestion, and defense, microbial symbionts of insects are increasingly found to affect their host’s response toward abiotic stressors. In particular, symbiotic microbes can reduce or enhance tolerance to temperature extremes, improve desiccation resistance by aiding cuticle biosynthesis and sclerotization, and detoxify heavy metals. As such, individual symbionts or microbial communities can expand or constrain the abiotic niche space of their host and determine its adaptability to fluctuating environments. In light of the increasing impact of humans on climate and environment, a better understanding of host-microbe interactions is necessary to predict how different insect species will respond to changes in abiotic conditions.

除了对宿主的营养，消化和防御有深入研究的贡献外，越来越多地发现昆虫的微生物共生体会影响宿主对非生物胁迫的反应。特别是，共生微生物可以降低或增强对极端温度的耐受性，通过促进表皮的生物合成和硬化来改善抗干燥性，以及对重金属进行解毒。这样，个体共生体或微生物群落可以扩展或限制其宿主的非生物生态位空间，并确定其对波动环境的适应性。鉴于人类对气候和环境的影响越来越大，必须更好地了解宿主与微生物之间的相互作用，以预测不同的昆虫物种将如何应对非生物条件的变化。