Epigenetic regulation during salinity and drought stress in plants: Histone modifications and DNA methylation

Abstract

Current researches in plant stress biology have largely focused on understanding the regulatory processes at the intricate molecular level in plants exposed to various environmental constraints. Elucidation of such molecular switches would better aid crop biotechnologists to design genetically improved plants with stress-tolerant phenotypes and minimally-compromised productivity. Epigenetic regulation, which modifies the chromatin architecture to facilitate gene expression at specific loci of the genome, is a rapidly developing field of research. Epigenetics has also incurred the identity of stress memory in plants which allow the stress pre-exposed plants to better combat similar stress during future exposures. In this review, we have highlighted the reports available so far regarding epigenetic research in plants with respect to abiotic stresses like salinity and drought, the two most prevalent forms of environmental stresses throughout the globe, responsible for drastic annual crop losses.