Regulatory Role of Transcription Factors in Abiotic Stress Responses in Plants

Abstract

The major abiotic stresses, such as drought, extreme temperatures, and salinity, are responsible for huge losses in agricultural production. Abiotic stresses induce various biochemical and physiological responses in plants, and absdsic acid (ABA), a plant hormone, plays important roles in the responses. Various stress-responsive genes can be expressed under environmental stresses either through an ABAdependent or ABA-independent pathway, and various stress signals and ABA share common elements. Both ABA-dependent and ABA-independent signal transduction pathways from stress signal perception to gene expression involve different teanscriptionJfactors.-The. maj.or_ transcription factors involved in abiotic stress response are bZIP proteins, MYB-like proteins, MYC-Kke bHLH proteins, HD-ZIP proteins, and AP2/EREBP proteins. This chapter provides an extensive review of the AP2/EREBP transcription factors and their potential for abiotic stress tolerance in crops.