Plant Responses to Abiotic Stress

Submission Deadline: 01 January 2026 View: 1702 Submit to Special Issue

Guest Editors

Dr. Lucija Galic

Email: lucija.galic@fazos.hr

Affiliation: Department of Agroecology and Environment Protection, Faculty of Agrobiotehnical Science, Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek, 31000 Osijek, Croatia

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Research Interests: soil science, bioforification, selenium, plant physiology, agronomy, crop science

Assist. Prof. Ivana Varga

Email: ivana.varga@fazos.hr

Affiliation: Department of Plant Production and Biotechnology, Faculty of Agrobiotechnical Sciences Osijek, Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek, Vladimira Preloga 1, 31000 Osijek, Croatia

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Research Interests: plant production, antioxidant activity, fertilization, agronomy

Summary

Plants constantly face numerous challenges due to environmental conditions, including abiotic stresses such as drought, salinity, extreme temperatures, and nutrient imbalances. These stresses can severely impact plant growth, development, and overall agricultural yield. Climate change is intensifying abiotic stresses like drought, heat waves, floods, and soil salinization, making them more frequent and severe. This amplifies existing challenges for plants, creating new environmental pressures. Therefore, understanding how plants respond to these changing conditions is crucial for developing strategies to enhance their resilience.
Abiotic stresses cause a variety of physiological disruptions in plants, affecting cellular processes such as water uptake, photosynthesis, and nutrient absorption. For example, drought stress reduces water availability, while salinity disrupts ion balance, leading to toxicity. Similarly, heat stress and extreme cold can damage plant cells, causing a decrease in metabolic activity. Understanding these stress responses at the molecular, biochemical, and physiological levels is key to identifying solutions that can mitigate their effects.This Special Issue of Phyton-International Journal of Experimental Botany aims to provide a comprehensive overview of recent advancements in understanding plant responses to abiotic stresses. By exploring molecular pathways, biochemical adaptations, and physiological mechanisms, this issue will shed light on innovative approaches for improving plant stress tolerance. Key areas of interest include the roles of plant hormones and signaling pathways, the genetic regulation of stress-responsive genes, and the interactions between plants and beneficial microorganisms. Research that incorporates cutting-edge technologies such as "omics" and AI tools to monitor plant stress is also encouraged.Understanding how plants perceive, signal, and respond to stress is fundamental for developing stress-resistant crop varieties. This research is not only crucial for improving agricultural productivity but also for ensuring food security in the face of increasing environmental challenges. Therefore, contributions that offer mechanistic insights or novel strategies for enhancing plant resilience are essential for moving towards sustainable agricultural practices.

Topics of interest of this Special lssue include, but are not limited to:
· Plant survival strategies under drought and salt stress
· Effects of soil water stress on crop productivity and countermeasures
· High and low temperature stress: physiological and molecular responses of plants
· Light stress and plant photosynthetic efficiency: challenges and opportunities
· Mechanisms of action of plant antioxidant systems under abiotic stress
· Signal transduction and regulation of plant hormones under abiotic stress
· Mechanisms of plant adaptation to abiotic stress: from molecules to ecosystems
· Novel tools to mitigate plant stress and improve crop yield

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Published Papers