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Advance in Plant Abiotic Stress: 3rd Edition
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Advance in Plant Abiotic Stress: 3rd Edition

A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular Plant Sciences".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 August 2025 | Viewed by 1574

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. De-Guo Han

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
College of Horticulture & Landscape Architecture, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin 150030, China
Interests: transcription factors in abiotic stress (cold, drought, salt, etc.) and response of fruit
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Xingguo Li

E-Mail
Guest Editor
College of Horticulture & Landscape Architecture, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin 150030, China
Interests: plant abiotic stress; secondary metabolism
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Plants are frequently exposed to variable environmental stresses, such as drought, salt, heat, cold, and nutrient deficiency, which adversely affect plant growth, development, and productivity. In the long process of evolution, plants have evolved complex self-regulation mechanisms to adapt to abiotic stress, such as drought and salt stresses, in which transcription factors play an irreplaceable role. Also, plant hormones act as signalling compounds that regulate crucial aspects of growth, development, and environmental stress responses. They activate a multitude of signalling cascades to elicit a plant’s adaptive responses.

This Special Issue will provide a platform for molecular research on plant abiotic stress, with a special focus on plant stress resistance mechanisms. We believe that this Special Issue will enable further research on plants and lead to the improvement of plants’ tolerance to abiotic stresses in the future. We request submissions of original papers and reviews based on results from molecular viewpoints.

Prof. Dr. De-Guo Han
Dr. Xingguo Li
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. International Journal of Molecular Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. There is an Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal. For details about the APC please see here. Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • abiotic stress
  • cold
  • drought
  • salt
  • heat
  • nutrient deficiency
  • secondary metabolism
  • stress resistance
  • plant

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

13 pages, 20460 KiB  
Article
The Effects of AtNCED3 on the Cuticle of Rice Leaves During the Nutritional Growth Period
by Yang Zhang, Yuwei Jia, Hui Chen, Min Wang, Xiaoli Li, Lanfang Jiang, Jianyu Hao, Xiaofei Ma and Hutai Ji
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2025, 26(14), 6690; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms26146690 (registering DOI) - 12 Jul 2025
Viewed by 56
Abstract
The plant cuticle, a protective barrier against external stresses, and abscisic acid (ABA), a key phytohormone, are crucial for plant growth and stress responses. Heterologous expression of AtNCED3 in plants has been widely studied. In this research, by comparing the japonica rice cultivar [...] Read more.
The plant cuticle, a protective barrier against external stresses, and abscisic acid (ABA), a key phytohormone, are crucial for plant growth and stress responses. Heterologous expression of AtNCED3 in plants has been widely studied. In this research, by comparing the japonica rice cultivar Zhonghua 10 and its AtNCED3 over-expressing lines during the vegetative growth stage through multiple methods, we found that AtNCED3 over-expression increased leaf ABA content, enhanced epidermal wax and cutin accumulation, modified wax crystal density, and thickened the cuticle. These changes reduced leaf epidermal permeability and the transpiration rate, thus enhancing drought tolerance. This study helps understand the role of endogenous ABA in rice cuticle synthesis and its mechanism in plant drought tolerance, offering potential for genetic improvement of drought resistance in crops. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advance in Plant Abiotic Stress: 3rd Edition)
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24 pages, 11135 KiB  
Article
Genome-Wide Identification and Expression Profiling of SlGeBP Gene Family in Response to Hormone and Abiotic Stresses in Solanum lycopersicum L.
by Haohao Cao, Danfeng Wang, Xiaoli Li, Yi Zhang, Deding Su, Wang Lu, Kedong Xu and Zhengguo Li
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2025, 26(13), 6008; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms26136008 - 23 Jun 2025
Viewed by 286
Abstract
The GLABROUS1 enhancer-binding protein (GeBP) gene family, a plant-specific class of transcriptional regulators, is involved in multiple biological processes, including the formation of trichomes, plant growth, and environmental adaptation. However, the functional characterization of SlGeBP genes in tomato remains poor, particularly regarding their [...] Read more.
The GLABROUS1 enhancer-binding protein (GeBP) gene family, a plant-specific class of transcriptional regulators, is involved in multiple biological processes, including the formation of trichomes, plant growth, and environmental adaptation. However, the functional characterization of SlGeBP genes in tomato remains poor, particularly regarding their roles in regulating developmental processes and stress response mechanisms. In this study, 11 SlGeBP family members were identified from the tomato genome and 97 GeBP proteins from six species were classified into three groups. A wide range of elements linked to phytohormone, stress, and plant development were presented on the promoter sequences. Gene expression profile analysis revealed a comprehensive expression during the vegetative and immature fruit development stages. Analysis of the expression level under nine hormones and seven stresses can help us to understand the responsiveness of SlGeBP genes associated with hormone induction and stress tolerance. Subcellular localization analysis exhibited that SlGeBP1 and SlGeBP5 were localized in the nucleus, and the yeast two-hybrid assay confirmed that SlGeBP1 could interact with SlGeBP5. This study will help us to understand the potential function of the SlGeBP family and may establish a basis for further research on phytohormone signaling and stress resistance. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advance in Plant Abiotic Stress: 3rd Edition)
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20 pages, 4894 KiB  
Article
Overexpression of a Malus baccata (L.) Borkh WRKY Factor Gene MbWRKY33 Increased High Salinity Stress Tolerance in Arabidopsis thaliana
by Xinhui Wang, Ming Gao, Yihan Kong, Qian Yu, Lu Yao, Xingguo Li, Wenhui Li, Wanda Liu, Ruining Hou, Lihua Zhang and Deguo Han
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2025, 26(12), 5833; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms26125833 - 18 Jun 2025
Viewed by 266
Abstract
The WRKY transcription factor family is a significant family of plant transcription factors (TFs). Plant growth and development are often influenced by abiotic factors, such as salinity and low temperature. Numerous studies have demonstrated that WRKY TFs primarily influence plant responses to adversity. [...] Read more.
The WRKY transcription factor family is a significant family of plant transcription factors (TFs). Plant growth and development are often influenced by abiotic factors, such as salinity and low temperature. Numerous studies have demonstrated that WRKY TFs primarily influence plant responses to adversity. However, there are few studies on the role of WRKY genes in the stress responses of Malus baccata (L.) Borkh. We cloned the MbWRKY33 gene from Malus baccata for this research, and its roles in salt stress tolerance were analyzed. Phylogenetic tree analysis revealed that MbWRKY33 and PbWRKY33 have the highest homology. Subcellular localization revealed that MbWRKY33 was located within the nucleus. An analysis of tissue-specific expression showed that MbWRKY33 had relatively high expression levels in young leaves and roots. Moreover, Arabidopsis thaliana plants overexpressing MbWRKY33 exhibited stronger resistance to salt stress compared with the wild type (WT) and the unloaded line empty vector (UL). Under the treatment of 200 mM NaCl, transgenic Arabidopsis thaliana plants exhibited significantly higher activities of antioxidant enzymes like superoxide dismutase (SOD), peroxidase (POD), and catalase (CAT) than the control. In contrast, the WT and the UL lines had elevated levels of malondialdehyde (MDA) and reactive oxygen species (ROS). In addition, MbWRKY33 elevates transgenic plant resistance to salt stress by regulating the expression levels of AtNHX1, AtSOS1, AtSOS3, AtNCED3, AtSnRK2, and AtRD29a. Results indicated that MbWRKY33 in Malus might be linked to high-salinity stress responses, laying a foundation for understanding WRKY TFs’ reaction to such stress. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advance in Plant Abiotic Stress: 3rd Edition)
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13 pages, 2515 KiB  
Article
Ferric-Chelate Reductase FRO3 Is Involved in Iron Homeostasis in Table Grape and Enhanced Plant Tolerance to Iron-Deficient Conditions
by Jianping Wang, Chenxiao Wang, Yutong Cui, Matthew Shi, Meiling Tang and Zhizhong Song
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2025, 26(11), 5172; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms26115172 - 28 May 2025
Viewed by 339
Abstract
In plants, ferric-chelate reductase (FRO) plays a critical role in mediating extracellular iron (Fe) reduction, a process essential for cellular Fe homeostasis and abiotic stress tolerance. However, the biological functions and regulatory mechanisms of FRO proteins in fruit crops remain poorly characterized. Here, [...] Read more.
In plants, ferric-chelate reductase (FRO) plays a critical role in mediating extracellular iron (Fe) reduction, a process essential for cellular Fe homeostasis and abiotic stress tolerance. However, the biological functions and regulatory mechanisms of FRO proteins in fruit crops remain poorly characterized. Here, six VvFRO genes were identified in the table grape cultivar ‘Yanhong’. Transcriptional analysis revealed that root expression of these genes was mainly induced under Fe deficiency, Fe depletion, NaCl stress, and PEG-induced drought stress, respectively, but remained unchanged by low temperature (4 °C) or heat treatment (45 °C). Among them, VvFRO3 exhibited the highest constitutive expression, predominantly in leaves, and was significantly up-regulated under Fe deficiency, Fe depletion, or NaCl treatment. Functional complementation assays demonstrated that heterologous overexpression of VvFRO3 in the Arabidopsis thaliana fro2 knockout mutant rescued its growth retardation phenotype, particularly under Fe-deficient conditions. This study advances our understanding of Fe uptake, transport, and homeostasis mechanisms in perennial fruit crops. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advance in Plant Abiotic Stress: 3rd Edition)
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