Figure 1.

Scheme of the impact of climate change on the immune system of livestock animals. Climate change is a complex phenomenon that include different dramatic event such as global warming, desertification, alteration of water cycle leading to floods and droughts, increase concentration of atmospheric CO₂, acidification, and alteration of the salinity of the oceans. All these events deeply affect the immune system of livestock species (mammals, avian, and fishes) both directly and indirectly. Many of the responses are common to different animals such as the activation of the HPA axis with the release of cortisol (that is an immune suppressor), production of HSPs in response to the oxidative stress, reduction of Ig production and increased susceptibility to infectious diseases.