Adaptive Strategies and Molecular Mechanisms in Plants Exposed to Abiotic Stresses
Rahul Anand
Department of Molecular Biology and Genetic Engineering (C.B.S.H.), Govind Ballabh Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, Pantnagar (U.S.Nagar), 263145, Uttarakhand, India.
Sandeep Arora *
Department of Molecular Biology and Genetic Engineering (C.B.S.H.), Govind Ballabh Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, Pantnagar (U.S.Nagar), 263145, Uttarakhand, India.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
Abiotic stresses such as drought, salinity, extreme temperatures, heavy metal toxicity, waterlogging and high-intensity radiations represent the most formidable constraints on global plant productivity, and are collectively responsible for crop yield losses up to 50% worldwide. Plants, as sessile organisms, have evolved an intricate arsenal of morphological, physiological, biochemical and molecular mechanisms to perceive, transduce and respond to adverse environmental signals. This review provides a comprehensive synthesis of current understanding of abiotic stress biology in plants, examining the nature of individual stressors and their associated cellular injuries. The overlapping and stress-specific signaling networks including reactive oxygen species (ROS) homeostasis, abscisic acid (ABA) mediated pathways, mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) cascades and the transcriptional regulatory machinery, particularly DREB/CBF, MYB, WRKY and NAC transcription factor families are included. Physiological adaptation strategies such as osmotic adjustment, stomatal regulation and heat-shock protein induction are discussed alongside epigenetic stress memory mechanisms. Advances in omics technologies and translational applications for engineering stress-resilient crops are also reviewed. This work underscores the integration of fundamental stress biology with applied agricultural research in the face of accelerating climate change.
Keywords: Abiotic, stress, drought, salinity, heat, ROS