Plant Responses to Drought Stress: Morphological, Physiological, Molecular Approaches, and Drought Resistance
Pratap Naikwade
Abstract
Water is the most vital component of all organisms for their existence and development. Though there are many abiotic factors, drought is the greatest imperative abiotic aspect responsible for various changes in plant metabolism and adversely affecting growth and yield. Drought independently causes more crop yield losses than all pathogens combined in a year. Plant responses to drought stress by various modifications in morphology, anatomy, physiology, biochemistry, etc., to enhance water usage proficiency by limiting the loss of water by transpiration and other ways. Plant responses to drought can be classified as short-term, mid-term, and long-term. Drought stress causes negative consequences on chlorophyll, photosystems which are important for photosynthesis, and it also disturbs electron transport mechanisms hence resulting in a decline in photosynthetic efficiency of plants. Drought resistance is a complex feature that endures through several mechanisms like escape, avoidance, and tolerance. It is estimated that in the future, water availability will be reduced due to various climate change factors, but demand for food is also increasing due to population explosion, so it is required to highlight how plants react to drought and various mechanisms involved in drought tolerance. The present chapter summarizes important findings of plant responses to drought stress, morphological, physiological, and molecular 150approaches, and highlights plant mechanisms of drought resistance which could be exploited to enhance the plant proficiency to survive under water deficit conditions. It is a need of the hour to comprehend various impacts of drought stress on plants for improved stress management strategies with logical implications.