Molecular Mechanisms of Abiotic Stress Tolerance in Crop Plants

Dear Colleagues,

Climate change is having a significant impact on global ecosystems and, no less significant, on agricultural production across many areas of the world. The negative effects of increased temperature, reduced water availability, elevated salinity, or rapidly changing environmental factors on the growth and yield formation of crops are well known. Thanks to numerous -omics technologies, not only have the genome sequences of many crops been elucidated in recent years, but also, far-reaching insights into gene regulation, metabolic profiles and networks, or protein patterns been obtained. In addition, more and more refined genome engineering methods, e.g., on the basis of CRISPR-Cas9, allow altering plant genomes with increasing precision and developing crops with superior tolerance to abiotic stressors. The mechanisms of stress tolerance are sophisticated and may vary in different cells, tissues, and organs. Central to future plant breeding is improving stress tolerance while at the same time maintaining high and stable yields. The cultivation of hitherto underutilized crops, or even the establishment of completely new crops through integrative approaches of genome and -omics research, can help to maintain and improve global food security under the increasingly harsh conditions of climate change. Additionally, research on plants growing in marginal locations can help to develop crops adapted to climate change. For the Special Issue, we expect contributions with original research results as well as review articles on relevant and, if possible, little-addressed topics. Further, opinion papers with interesting views on future research are welcome.

Prof. Dr. Bernd Mueller-Roeber
Prof. Dr. Salma Balazadeh
Guest Editors

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