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Drought Stress in Plants: An Overview

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Plant Responses to Drought Stress

Abstract

Drought is one of the major constraints limiting crop production worldwide. Crop growth models predict that this issue will be more severe in future. Drought impairs normal growth, disturbs water relations, and reduces water use efficiency in plants. Plants, however, have a variety of physiological and biochemical responses at cellular and whole organism levels, making it a more complex phenomenon. The rate of photosynthesis is reduced mainly by stomatal closure, membrane damage, and disturbed activity of various enzymes, especially those involved in ATP synthesis. Plants display a range of mechanisms to withstand drought, such as reduced water loss by increased diffusive resistance, increased water uptake with prolific and deep root systems, and smaller and succulent leaves to reduce transpirational loss. Low-molecular-weight osmolytes, including glycinebetaine, proline and other amino acids, organic acids, and polyols also play vital roles in sustaining cellular functions under drought. Plant growth substances such as salicylic acid, auxins, gibberellins, cytokinins, and abscisic acid modulate plant responses toward drought. Polyamines, citrulline, and several enzymes act as antioxidants and reduce adverse effects of water deficit. Plant drought stress can be managed by adopting strategies such as mass screening and breeding, marker-assisted selection, and exogenous application of hormones and osmoprotectants to seeds or growing plants, as well as engineering for drought resistance. Here, we provide an overview of plant drought stress, its effects on plants’ resistance mechanisms and management strategies to cope with drought stress.

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Abbreviations

ABA:

Abscisic acid

ADC2:

Arginine decarboxlase 2 gene

Amax :

Maximum photosynthetic efficiency

APX:

Ascorbate peroxidase

BRs:

Brassinolides

CAT:

Catalase

chl:

Chlorophyll

Cks:

Cytokinins

DRE/CRT:

Dehydration-responsive element/C-repeat

DREB:

Dehydration-responsive element binding proteins

EBR:

Epibrassinolide

ETC:

Electron transport chain

GA3 :

Gibberellins

GB:

Glycinebetaine

GR:

Glutathione reductase

H+-ATPase:

Hydrogen pump ATPase protein

H2O2 :

Hydrogen peroxide

IAA:

Indole acetic acid

K:

Potassium

LAI:

Leaf area index

LEA:

Late embryogenesis abundant

N:

Nitrogen

O2 − :

Superoxide radicals

O 12 :

Single oxygen

OH− :

Hydroxyl radicals

OsRDCPs:

Oryza sativa RING domain-containing proteins

P:

Phosphorous

PA:

Polyamine

PAL:

Phenylalanine ammonia-lyase

POX:

Peroxidase

PPO:

Polyphenol oxidase

PSI:

Photosystem I

PSII:

Photosystem II

QTL:

Quantitative trait loci

RO:

Alkoxy radicals

ROS:

Reactive oxygen species

Rubisco:

Ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase

RuBP:

Ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate

RWC:

Relative water contents

SA:

Salicylic acid

Si:

Silicon

SOD:

Superoxide dismutase

TcADC:

Arginine decarboxylase

TcODC:

Ornithine decarboxylase

TcSAMDC:

S-adenosylmethionine decarboxylase

TcSPDS:

Spermidine synthase

TcSPMS:

Spermine synthase

Vc,max :

Carboxylation velocity of Rubisco

WUE:

Water use efficiency

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Plant Nutrition, Justus-Liebig-University, Heinrich-Buff-Ring 26-32, D-35392, Giessen, Germany

    M. Farooq

  2. Department of Agronomy, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad, Pakistan

    M. Farooq

  3. The UWA Institute of Agriculture, The University of Western Australia, Crawley, WA 6009, Australia

    M. Farooq & K. H. M. Siddique

  4. Department of Agronomy, Bahauddin Zakariya University, Multan, Pakistan

    M. Hussain

  5. Department of Crop Science and Biotechnology, Dankook University, Chungnam, 330-714, South Korea

    M. Hussain

  6. Department of Botany, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad, Pakistan

    Abdul Wahid

  7. College of Food and Agricultural Sciences, King Saud University, 2460, Riyadh, 11451, Saudi Arabia

    K. H. M. Siddique

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  1. M. Farooq
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  4. K. H. M. Siddique
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Correspondence to M. Farooq .

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  1. (CSIC), Departamento de Microbiología, Estación Experimental del Zaidín, Profesor Albareda 1, Granada, 18008, Spain

    Ricardo Aroca

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Farooq, M., Hussain, M., Wahid, A., Siddique, K.H.M. (2012). Drought Stress in Plants: An Overview. In: Aroca, R. (eds) Plant Responses to Drought Stress. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-32653-0_1

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