Cell signaling during drought and salt stress

Abstract

Among abiotic factors, salinity and drought stress affect every aspect of plant from physiology to metabolic activities. Understanding of abiotic stress responses and signal transduction to control adaptive pathways is a crucial step in determining the plant resistance exposed to unfavorable environments. Molecular and genomic findings have shown several changes in gene expression profiling under drought and salt stresses in plants. Numbers of transcription factors which are accountable for inducing stress-responsive genes have been documented. To survive in adverse condition, plants have stress-specific and adaptive responses which provide them necessary protection. Although, there are several signaling pathways and stress-responsive perceptions, some of which are definite in function, while others may have cross talk. Expressions of a large number of transcripts and genes are induced by these abiotic stresses in plants which facilitate stress tolerance and stress response. Recently, progress has been made in investigating the complex cascades of gene expression in stress responses. Knowledge about plant stress signaling is essential for the development of transgenic and improving breeding strategies in crops under stress environment. This chapter provides an outline of the common features of stress signaling in plants with some current studies on the functional analysis of signaling machineries under salt and drought stresses.