The physiology of plant responses to drought

2020/04/16 by Aditi Gupta, Andrés Rico‐Medina, Ana I. Caño‐Delgado · 30 citations
Agricultural and Biological Sciences · #Plant Molecular Biology Research #Plant Stress Responses and Tolerance #Plant responses to water stress

paper · doi:10.1126/science.aaz7614

openalex publication_date 2020/04/16 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/31

Abstract

Drought alone causes more annual loss in crop yield than all pathogens combined. To adapt to moisture gradients in soil, plants alter their physiology, modify root growth and architecture, and close stomata on their aboveground segments. These tissue-specific responses modify the flux of cellular signals, resulting in early flowering or stunted growth and, often, reduced yield. Physiological and molecular analyses of the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana have identified phytohormone signaling as key for regulating the response to drought or water insufficiency. Here we discuss how engineering hormone signaling in specific cells and cellular domains can facilitate improved plant responses to drought. We explore current knowledge and future questions central to the quest to produce high-yield, drought-resistant crops.

Citations

• Mesophyll Cells Are the Main Site of Abscisic Acid Biosynthesis in Water-Stressed Leaves
• Brassinosteroid signaling in plant development and adaptation to stress
• The impact of disasters and crises on agriculture and food security: 2021

Cited by

• ABA-auxin cascade regulates crop root angle in response to drought
• Phosphorylation‐dependent activation of MAP4K1/2 by OST1 mediates ABA‐induced stomatal closure in <i>Arabidopsis</i>
• Diverse roles of MYB transcription factors in plants
• WRKY transcription factors: Hubs for regulating plant growth and stress responses
• A chromosome-scale genome assembly of the pioneer plant <i>Stylosanthes angustifolia</i>: insights into genome evolution and drought adaptation
• Rooting for survival: how plants tackle a challenging environment through a diversity of root forms and functions
• Plant response to decreasing soil moisture under rising atmospheric CO2 levels
• Tobacco roots increasing diameter and secondary lateral density in response to drought stress
• ZmCRK5A kinase enhances drought tolerance in maize via phosphorylation‐dependent inhibition of ZmSMH4
• The impact of drought stress under different soil matrices on physiological characteristics of soybean seedlings
• Arabidopsis <scp>SNARE SYP132</scp> impacts on <scp>PIP2</scp>;1 trafficking and function in salinity stress
• Take a deep BReath: Manipulating brassinosteroid homeostasis helps cereals adapt to environmental stress
• The CsTIE1–CsAGL16 module regulates lateral branch outgrowth and drought tolerance in cucumber
• Gene family rearrangements and transcriptional priming drive the evolution of vegetative desiccation tolerance in <i>Selaginella</i>
• Accurate genomic prediction for grain yield and grain moisture content of maize hybrids using multi‐environment data
• The heat shock factor <scp>HSFB1</scp> coordinates plant growth and drought tolerance in Arabidopsis
• Genomic insights into drought adaptation of the forage shrub <i>Caragana korshinskii</i> (Fabaceae) widely planted in drylands
• Tolerance to multiple abiotic stresses is mediated by interacting CNGC proteins that regulate Ca²⁺ influx and stomatal movement in rice
• Editing of <scp> <i>SlMYB60</i> </scp> Reveals a Role in Cuticle Formation in Tomato
• Context-Dependent Effects of Microbial Inoculation on Sagebrush Seedlings During Drought Stress
• A variome–transcriptome–metabolome network links GABA biosynthesis to stress resilience in maize
• Seeing the unseen: A novel approach to extract latent plant root traits from digital images
• Anatomical variations along the leaf axis modulate photosynthetic responses of sorghum and maize under different water availabilities
• Genomic and transcriptomic analyses of <i>Heteropoda venatoria</i> reveal the expansion of P450 family for starvation resistance in spiders
• Overexpression of tonoplast Ca²⁺‐ATPase in guard cells synergistically enhances stomatal opening and drought tolerance
• Genomic Regions Associated with Drought Tolerance and Other Traits in Lentils (Lens sp.)
• Abiotic stress responses in plants
• Basal axillary buds in pea are hydraulically connected to the stem but are protected during drought by osmotic adjustment
• ZmSnRK2.10‐mediated phosphorylation of ZmDNL1 attenuates ZmYAB15 activity to enhance drought resilience in maize
• Unravelling the intraspecific variation in drought responses in seedlings of European black pine ( <i>Pinus nigra</i> J.F. Arnold)

Related

• Advancements in Water‐Saving Strategies and Crop Adaptation to Drought: A Comprehensive Review
• Complex plant responses to drought and heat stress under climate change
• Insights into the plant responses to drought and decoding the potential of root associated microbiome for inducing drought tolerance
• Response Mechanism of Plants to Drought Stress
• Drought Stress Impacts on Plants and Different Approaches to Alleviate Its Adverse Effects