Abiotic Stress and Plant Responses

Abiotic stresses such as temperature, radiation, salinity, heavy metals and drought can all limit crop productivity. The anthropogenic activities and changed agricultural system, intense use of chemical fertilizers and artificial irrigation have increased temperature, UV-B radiation, drought, salinity and heavy metals stresses and have caused yield losses. To overcome yield losses due to abiotic stresses, plants need to possess mechanisms of avoidance and tolerance to stress. For sustainable agricultural development, crops should have abiotic stress resistant traits and the mechanism for stress tolerance. This book provides coverage of the advances in the area of abiotic stress responses and stress management. Key features: Describes physiological and molecular responses, and the role of signalling molecules and plant phenolics in abiotic stress tolerance. Covers salinity induced oxidative stress, strategies of halophytes to survive in a salty environments and tolerance mechanisms. Discusses heavy metal induced modulation of gene expression, and the role of metal binding peptides and antioxidants. Deals with the resistance mechanism related to changes in endogenous polyamines to drought stress. Covers herbicide contamination in plants. Describes the significance of salicylic acid in abiotic stress tolerance.