Fluctuating Asymmetry and Environmental Stress

Fluctuating asymmetry (as an estimator of developmental instability) is an interesting biomarker used to demonstrate effects of environmental stress.

We invite experimental, theoretical, and review papers addressing the application of measures of fluctuating asymmetry, directional asymmetry, and antisymmetry in the understanding of fitness and consequences in general of environmental stressors at the individual and the population level. We invite studies representing all taxa and at all levels or complexity.

We hope to see studies addressing how consequences of fluctuating asymmetry effectively differ from other types of responses to environmental stress. Are there interesting advancements in the measurements of fluctuating asymmetry? Are there advancements in the understanding of the development of fluctuating asymmetry? Are there advancements in the understanding of which environmental stressors that affect different types of fluctuating asymmetry differently? If fluctuating asymmetry should be considered a fitness estimator, it needs to be partly inherited; how big is the heritability of fluctuating asymmetry for a given trait? How much does the gene-environmental interaction affect the degree of fluctuating asymmetry? To which degree does fluctuating asymmetry have an evolutionary significance? All these questions need a deep attention in order to be able to interpret the variations of fluctuating asymmetry and its association with environmental and genetic stressors.

Perhaps controversially, are there new opinions in the actual application of fluctuating asymmetry as a biomarker in responses to different environmental stressors? What is the future of the use of fluctuating asymmetry in response to environmental stress?

Dr. Dan Bruhn
Prof. Dr. Cino Pertoldi
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-anonymized peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Symmetry is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.