Mangroves: An Underutilized Gene Pool to Combat Salinity

Abstract

Salinity is a global problem, being aggravated by climate change, scanty rainfall, poor irrigation systems, salt ingression, water contamination, and other environmental factors. The salinity stress tolerance mechanism is a very complex phenomenon, and stress pathways are co-ordinately linked to impart salt tolerance. Although a number of salt-responsive genes have been reported from the halophytes, there is always a quest for promising stress-responsive genes that can modulate plant physiology according to salt stress. Several known genes, like antiporters, antioxidant encoding genes, and some novel genes, were isolated from halophytes and explored for developing stress tolerance in the crop plants (glycophytes). We provide here a comprehensive update on salinity-induced adverse effects on soils and plants. In this chapter, the physiological and biochemical adaptation strategies that help mangroves and crop plants grow and survive in salinity-affected areas are reviewed. In this review, mangroves are discussed as an underutilized gene pool of salt-responsive genes that can be utilized for developing salinity tolerance in crop plants using strategies, like genetic engineering and molecular breeding by marker-assisted breeding phenotyping technologies, GWAS, etc.