Epigenetic and Molecular Control of Plant Hormones in Development and Abiotic Adaptation
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: 31 July 2026 | Viewed by 14
Special Issue Editor
Interests: molecular plant biology; abiotic stress signalling and adaptation; chromatin dynamics and epigenetics
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
We are pleased to invite you to contribute to the Special Issue entitled “Epigenetic and Molecular Control of Plant Hormones in Development and Abiotic Adaptation”, to be published in the International Journal of Molecular Sciences (IJMS, MDPI, JCR Q1).
Plant hormones (phytohormones) are central regulators of plant growth, development, and environmental responsiveness, coordinating fundamental processes such as cell division, differentiation, organogenesis, and resource allocation. There is increasing evidence highlighting their pivotal role in integrating developmental programmes with adaptive responses to abiotic stresses, including drought, salinity, temperature extremes, and nutrient limitation. Hormonal pathways, such as those involving cytokinins, auxins, gibberellins, abscisic acid, ethylene, jasmonates, salicylic acid, brassinosteroids, and strigolactones, act within complex and dynamic networks to fine-tune plant plasticity in response to fluctuating environmental conditions.
Meanwhile, epigenetic mechanisms, including DNA methylation, histone modifications, chromatin remodelling, and non-coding RNAs, have emerged as key regulators of gene expression plasticity, stress memory, and long-term adaptation in plants. The integration of hormonal signalling with epigenetic regulation is a rapidly evolving area of research, offering new insights into how plants balance growth and stress resilience through multilayered regulatory networks.
This Special Issue aims to bring together high-quality original research articles and reviews that investigate the molecular and epigenetic mechanisms that control plant hormone biosynthesis, signalling, transport, and crosstalk during development and in response to abiotic stress. The goal is to provide an integrated overview of how hormonal signalling pathways interact with chromatin-level regulation to shape plant development, adaptive responses, and stress memory. If at least ten articles are collected, the Special Issue may be printed in book form.
In this Special Issue, both original research articles and reviews are welcome. Research topics may include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Molecular components of plant hormone biosynthesis, transport, and signalling under abiotic stress.
- Epigenetic regulation (DNA methylation, histone modifications, and chromatin remodelling) of hormone-related genes.
- Epigenetically mediated crosstalk among different hormonal pathways during development and stress responses.
- Hormone-regulated transcription factors and chromatin-associated regulators in plant adaptation.
- Epigenetic stress memory and transgenerational inheritance involving hormonal signalling pathways.
- Multi-omics approaches integrating epigenomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, and hormone profiling to study plant stress adaptation.
We look forward to receiving your contributions.
Prof. Dr. Leonardo Bruno
Guest Editor
Manuscript Submission Information
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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.
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Keywords
- plant hormones
- phytohormone signaling
- epigenetic regulation
- chromatin remodeling
- abiotic stress
- plant development
- hormone crosstalk
- stress adaptation
- epigenetic memory
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