Special lssues

Physiological and Molecular Interventions in Improving Abiotic Stress Tolerance in Plants

Submission Deadline: 30 June 2023 (closed)

Guest Editors

Dr. Ali Raza
Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, China.

Summary

Agricultural production and dynamic climate changes are internally associated with each other in different facets, including drought, extreme temperatures, salinity, waterlogging, toxic metals/metalloids, nutrient imbalance, etc., which have unpleasant impacts on agricultural productivity. The risk of continuous changing environment has significantly focused the attention of plant scientists, as these changes negatively impact the plant growth and development that ultimately affect crop production and further enhance the challenges of global food insecurity. Owing to the rapid rise of the world's population, there is imperative to bring together knowledge of all fields of plant sciences with groundbreaking efforts in agriculture to maintain plant growth and consequently improve crop yield globally.

To get insight into the plant's adaptive response mechanisms towards environmental changes, researchers should need to in line with their efforts. For example, multi-omics, genome editing, modern breeding techniques, and application of plant growth regulators should be deployed not only to explore candidate genes but also to transfer and produce commercial stress-smart cultivars. Consequently, the quick advancement of studies on the amalgamation between physiological, biochemical, and molecular interventions of plants is important. Information on molecular mechanisms will deliver breeding programs with importance to gaining cultivars tolerant to abiotic stresses with improved productivity. In this scenario, several physiological and modern molecular techniques play a vital role, with a clear demand for modern advances that can speed up the rate of genetic advancement necessary to meet the unprecedented challenge of superior food sustainably. Hence, this special issue will feature the current improvements in physiological and molecular mechanisms to understand and improve the stress (single or combined) acclimation and tolerance mechanisms in the plants to feed the rapidly rising population.

This special issue welcomes submissions of original research, methods, and comprehensive- and mini-review articles related to multiple abiotic stress responses, adaptive and tolerance mechanisms in crop plants. 


Keywords

Abiotic stresses, crop improvement, climate change, genetics, genomics, genome editing, omics, transgenic breeding.

Published Papers


  • Open Access

    ARTICLE

    The Ability of Some Aquatic and Terrestrial Plants to Purify Domestic Wastewater

    Abida Kausar, Noreen Zahra, Humaira Kiran, Sadia Asim, Abid Raza, Ali Raza
    Phyton-International Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol.92, No.8, pp. 2245-2260, 2023, DOI:10.32604/phyton.2023.028264
    (This article belongs to this Special Issue: Physiological and Molecular Interventions in Improving Abiotic Stress Tolerance in Plants)
    Abstract The study aimed to evaluate the ability of some terrestrial and aquatic plants for wastewater purification. Aquatic plants can remove pollutants from wastewater by consuming and accumulating various contaminants in different parts of plants. Different aquatic and terrestrial plants (Rosa sinensis, Typha latifolia, Ocimm bacilicum, Azolla pinnata, and Salvinia molesta) which have the ability to decrease water pollution were utilized in this study. The capability of five different species of plants was investigated by measuring chemical oxygen demand (COD), biological oxygen demand (BOD), electrical conductivity (EC), total dissolved solids (TDS), and pH of the medium. In this research, some aquatic… More >

  • Open Access

    ARTICLE

    HD-Zip Transcription Factor is Responsible for No-Lobed Leaf in Watermelon (Citrullus lanatus L.)

    Shixiang Duan, Yaomiao Guo, Yinping Wang, Muhammad Jawad Umer, Dongming Liu, Sen Yang, Huanhuan Niu, Shouru Sun, Luming Yang, Junling Dou, Huayu Zhu
    Phyton-International Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol.92, No.5, pp. 1311-1328, 2023, DOI:10.32604/phyton.2023.026928
    (This article belongs to this Special Issue: Physiological and Molecular Interventions in Improving Abiotic Stress Tolerance in Plants)
    Abstract Leaf is a vital organ of plants that plays an essential role in photosynthesis and respiration. As an important agronomic trait in leaf development, leaf shape is classified into lobed, entire (no-lobed), and serrated in most crops. In this study, two-lobed leaf watermelon inbred lines WT2 and WCZ, and a no-lobed leaf watermelon inbred line WT20 were used to create two F2 populations. Segregation analysis suggested that lobed leaves were dominant over the no-lobed leaves, and it was controlled by a signal gene. A locus on watermelon chromosome 4 controlling watermelon lobed/no-lobed leaves was identified through BSA-seq strategy combined with… More >

  • Open Access

    ARTICLE

    Evaluating the Effects of Sustainable Chemical and Organic Fertilizers with Water Saving Practice on Corn Production and Soil Characteristics

    Xuejun Zhang, Muhammad Amjad Bashir, Qurat-Ul-Ain Raza, Xiaotong Liu, Jianhang Luo, Ying Zhao, Qiuliang Lei, Hafiz Muhammad Ali Raza, Abdur Rehim, Yucong Geng, Hongbin Liu
    Phyton-International Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol.92, No.5, pp. 1349-1360, 2023, DOI:10.32604/phyton.2023.026952
    (This article belongs to this Special Issue: Physiological and Molecular Interventions in Improving Abiotic Stress Tolerance in Plants)
    Abstract

    The rapidly growing world population, water shortage, and food security are promising problems for sustainable agriculture. Farmers adopt higher irrigation and fertilizer applications to increase crop production resulting in environmental pollution. This study aimed to identify the long-term effects of intelligent water and fertilizers used in corn yield and soil nutrient status. A series of field experiments were conducted for six years with treatments as: farmer accustomed to fertilization used as control (CON), fertilizer decrement (KF), fertilizer decrement + water-saving irrigation (BMP1); combined application of organic and inorganic fertilizer + water-saving irrigation (BMP2), and combined application of controlled-release fertilizer (BMP3).… More >

  • Open Access

    REVIEW

    Biochemical Mechanism Unlocking Their Potential Role in Salt Tolerance Mechanism of Zizyphus Germplasm

    Riaz Ahmad, Hafiza Muniba Din Muhammad, Safina Naz, Meryam Manzoor, Muhammad Ahsan Altaf
    Phyton-International Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol.92, No.5, pp. 1539-1553, 2023, DOI:10.32604/phyton.2023.026672
    (This article belongs to this Special Issue: Physiological and Molecular Interventions in Improving Abiotic Stress Tolerance in Plants)
    Abstract Salinity is one of the major constraints reducing plant growth and yield. Irrigation with poor quality and brackish water to orchards is a major cause of stunted growth and low yield. The salt tolerance mechanism is one of the complicated genomic characters that is very problematic to develop in fruit trees and becomes much more severe at any growth and developmental stage. Osmotic stress and hormonal imbalances are major constraints causing low biomass production. Fruit tree tolerance/sensitivity is chiefly based on the activation of a defense system comprised of super-oxidase dismutase (SOD), peroxidase (POD) and catalases (CAT), non-enzymatic compounds including… More >

  • Open Access

    ARTICLE

    Assessment of Nutrient Leaching Losses and Crop Uptake with Organic Fertilization, Water Saving Practices and Reduced Inorganic Fertilizer

    Xiaotong Liu, Muhammad Amjad Bashir, Yucong Geng, Qurat-Ul-Ain Raza, Abdur Rehim, Muhammad Aon, Jianhang Luo, Ying Zhao, Xuejun Zhang, Hongbin Liu
    Phyton-International Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol.92, No.5, pp. 1555-1570, 2023, DOI:10.32604/phyton.2023.026735
    (This article belongs to this Special Issue: Physiological and Molecular Interventions in Improving Abiotic Stress Tolerance in Plants)
    Abstract

    The increasing world population has forced excessive chemical fertilizer and irrigation to complete the global food demand, deteriorating the water quality and nutrient losses. Short-term studies do not compile the evidences; therefore, the study aimed to identify the effectiveness of reduced doses of inorganic fertilizer and water-saving practices, hence, a six-year experiment (2015–2020) was conducted in China to address the knowledge gap. The experimental treatments were: farmer accustomed fertilization used as control (525:180:30 kg NPK ha−1), fertilizer decrement (450:150:15 kg NPK ha−1), fertilizer decrement + water-saving irrigation (450:150:15 kg NPK ha−1), application of organic and inorganic fertilizer + water-saving irrigation… More >

  • Open Access

    ARTICLE

    An in Vitro Approach to Investigate the Role of Abscisic Acid in Alleviating the Negative Effects of Chilling Stress on Banana Shoots

    Ibrahim Hmmam, Ali Raza, Ivica Djalovic, Nagwa Khedr, Abdou Abdellatif
    Phyton-International Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol.92, No.6, pp. 1695-1711, 2023, DOI:10.32604/phyton.2023.028317
    (This article belongs to this Special Issue: Physiological and Molecular Interventions in Improving Abiotic Stress Tolerance in Plants)
    Abstract Banana is a tropical crop cultivated in warm places. Chilling stress in Egypt is making banana crops less productive. Abscisic acid (ABA), a key plant hormone, regulates metabolic and physiological processes and protects plants from a variety of stresses. In vitro growing banana shoots were pre-treated with ABA at four concentrations (0, 25, 50, and 100 mM) and chilled at 5°C for 24 h, followed by a six-day recovery period at 25°C. By comparing ABA treatments to both positive and negative controls, physiological and biochemical changes were investigated. Chilling stress (5°C) caused a considerable increase in lipid peroxidation and ion… More >

  • Open Access

    ARTICLE

    Introgression of Drought Tolerance into Elite Basmati Rice Variety through Marker-Assisted Backcrossing

    Muhammad Sabar, Shahzad Amir Naveed, Shahid Masood Shah, Abdul Rehman Khan, Muhammad Musaddiq Shah, Tahir Awan, Muhammad Ramzan Khan, Zaheer Abbas, Muhammad Arif
    Phyton-International Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol.92, No.5, pp. 1421-1438, 2023, DOI:10.32604/phyton.2023.025801
    (This article belongs to this Special Issue: Physiological and Molecular Interventions in Improving Abiotic Stress Tolerance in Plants)
    Abstract Drought is one of the major abiotic threat to rice production in the context of climate change. Super Basmati is an elite, fine grain basmati rice variety grown in Punjab, Pakistan. Due to drought sensitive in nature, its yield has been facing an alarming situation in production because of gradual decrease in irrigated water for a couple of years. Three reported novel QTLs for drought tolerance were selected for incorporation into Super Basmati by employing marker assisted selection strategy. IR55419-04 with novel QTLs was used as a donor parent. Foreground selection was performed by applying PCR based QTL linked SSR… More >

  • Open Access

    ARTICLE

    Application of Zinc, Iron and Boron Enhances Productivity and Grain Biofortification of Mungbean

    Muhammad Zafar, Siraj Ahmed, Muhammad Kashif Munir, Nawal Zafar, Muhammad Saqib, Muhammad Aleem Sarwar, Saba Iqbal, Baber Ali, Naveed Akhtar, Basharat Ali, Sadam Hussain, Muhammad Saeed, Mohammad Khalid Al-Sadoon, Aneela Gulnaz
    Phyton-International Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol.92, No.4, pp. 983-999, 2023, DOI:10.32604/phyton.2023.025813
    (This article belongs to this Special Issue: Physiological and Molecular Interventions in Improving Abiotic Stress Tolerance in Plants)
    Abstract Deficiencies of essential vitamins, iron (Fe), and zinc (Zn) affect over one-half of the world’s population. A significant progress has been made to control micronutrient deficiencies through supplementation, but new approaches are needed, especially to reach the rural poor. Agronomic biofortification of pulses with Zn, Fe, and boron (B) offers a pragmatic solution to combat hidden hunger instead of food fortification and supplementation. Moreover, it also has positive effects on crop production as well. Therefore, we conducted three separate field experiments for two consecutive years to evaluate the impact of soil and foliar application of the aforementioned nutrients on the… More >

  • Open Access

    ARTICLE

    Improving Quantitative and Qualitative Characteristics of Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) through Nitrogen Application under Semiarid Conditions

    Muhammad Rafiq, Muhammad Saqib, Husnain Jawad, Talha Javed, Sadam Hussain, Muhammad Arif, Baber Ali, Muhammad Sultan Ali Bazmi, Ghulam Abbas, Marjan Aziz, Mohammad Khalid Al-Sadoon, Aneela Gulnaz, Sobhi F. Lamlom, Muhammad Azeem Sabir, Jameel Akhtar
    Phyton-International Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol.92, No.4, pp. 1001-1017, 2023, DOI:10.32604/phyton.2023.025781
    (This article belongs to this Special Issue: Physiological and Molecular Interventions in Improving Abiotic Stress Tolerance in Plants)
    Abstract

    Nitrogen (N), the building block of plant proteins and enzymes, is an essential macronutrient for plant functions. A field experiment was conducted to investigate the impact of different N application rates (28, 57, 85, 114, 142, 171, and 200 kg ha−1) on the performance of spring wheat (cv. Ujala-2016) during the 2017–2018 and 2018–2019 growing seasons. A control without N application was kept for comparison. Two years mean data showed optimum seed yield (5,461.3 kg ha−1) for N-application at 142 kg ha−1 whereas application of lower and higher rates of N did not result in significant and economically higher seed… More >

  • Open Access

    ARTICLE

    Silicon and Nitric Oxide-Mediated Regulation of Growth Attributes, Metabolites and Antioxidant Defense System of Radish (Raphanus sativus L.) under Arsenic Stress

    Savita Bhardwaj, Tunisha Verma, Ali Raza, Dhriti Kapoor
    Phyton-International Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol.92, No.3, pp. 763-782, 2023, DOI:10.32604/phyton.2023.025672
    (This article belongs to this Special Issue: Physiological and Molecular Interventions in Improving Abiotic Stress Tolerance in Plants)
    Abstract

    Arsenic (As) contaminated food chains have emerged as a serious public concern for humans and animals and are known to affect the cultivation of edible crops throughout the world. Therefore, the present study was designed to investigate the individual as well as the combined effects of exogenous silicon (Si) and sodium nitroprusside (SNP), a nitric oxide (NO) donor, on plant growth, metabolites, and antioxidant defense systems of radish (Raphanus sativus L.) plants under three different concentrations of As stress, i.e., 0.3, 0.5, and 0.7 mM in a pot experiment. The results showed that As stress reduced the growth parameters of… More >

  • Open Access

    ARTICLE

    Salt Stress Affects the Growth and Yield of Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) by Altering the Antioxidant Machinery and Expression of Hormones and Stress-Specific Genes

    Shahid Hussain, Rui Zhang, Shuli Liu, Yang Wang, Irshad Ahmad, Yinglong Chen, Hongyan Hou, Qigen Dai
    Phyton-International Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol.92, No.3, pp. 861-881, 2023, DOI:10.32604/phyton.2023.025487
    (This article belongs to this Special Issue: Physiological and Molecular Interventions in Improving Abiotic Stress Tolerance in Plants)
    Abstract

    Understanding physiological responses in saline agriculture may facilitate wheat breeding programs. Based on a screening test, the Ningmai-14 (NM-14) and Yangmai-23 (YM-23) wheat cultivars were selected for further experiments to understand the underlying salinity tolerance mechanism. This study investigated the effects of five salinity levels such as Control (CK) = 0 (without NaCl stress), S1 = 0.20%, S2 = 0.25%, S3 = 0.30% and S4 = 0.35% of NaCl concentrations of soil on wheat plants. The results showed that increased salinity concentration reduced the growth and yield of wheat cultivars (NM-14 and YM-23). However, YM-23 (12.7%) yielded more than NM-14… More >

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