Physiological, biochemical, and metabolic responses of abiotic plant stress: salinity and drought

Abstract

The most important types of abiotic stress that affect agricultural crops throughout the world are drought and salinity. These stresses will continue to worsen as the current climate crisis progresses. Plants have evolved a complex set of mechanisms in order to protect themselves from salt and drought. At the macrobiological level, these include alterations in growth rate, water balance, antioxidant defenses, and photosynthesis. Altered metabolites include proline, carbohydrates, glycine betaine, gamma-aminobutyric acid, and polyamines. It is not surprising, thus, that one of the most important research areas of plant biology is the study of plant responses to abiotic stress and stress tolerance mechanisms. The methods, used in this study, are diverse, including the study of physiological properties, biochemical research, and metabolomics approaches toward abiotic stress. This awareness should lead to the development of (near) future, sustainable and better-adapted agriculture in the sense of global warming and environmental emission scenarios. Also, different information presented in this overview can be regarded by the scientific community to produce tolerant cultivars in response to salinity and drought stresses.