Plant Responses to Environmental Stress

Dear Colleagues,

Plant growth and development are constantly exposed to biotic and abiotic stresses, such as drought, salinity, extreme temperature, UV radiation, high light, nutrient deficiency, insects, pathogens, and weeds. These the main reasons behind reductions in crop yields and food production worldwide. As a result, for example due to drought stress, remarkable changes occur in plant growth, photosynthesis, enzymatic activities, nutrient uptake, and biomass production. The decreased photosynthetic efficiency that is linked to both stomatal and nonstomatal effects is the result of a disruption of either biochemical or/and photochemical activity and increased oxidative damage by surplus reactive oxygen species (ROS) accumulation, which can harm the chloroplast and particularly photosystem II (PSII). Several studies have revealed that the concurrent action of many stresses, e.g., drought stress, high temperature, and high light, constantly cause deeper effects than when acting separately. Thus, there is a need for studies focusing on multiple stressors that occur at once. At the same time, plants have developed several energetic approaches at the morphological, physiological, and biochemical levels, allowing them to avoid and/or tolerate biotic and abiotic stresses. Environmental-stress-induced ROS creation is scavenged by enzymatic and nonenzymatic antioxidants. Plant responses to a disruption of homeostasis caused by a low environmental stress level display an overcompensation reaction that results in a hormetic stimulation. Understanding the way plants respond to biotic and abiotic stresses is an ongoing research topic. This Research Topic will highlight the mechanisms of plant responses to such stresses and, thus, can help in the development of realistic interventions for increasing agricultural productivity. Hence, detecting steps or mechanisms where plant response mechanisms are suboptimal under different environmental conditions, and then optimizing these steps for a better response, represents a key research target in the efforts to increase the ability of crop plants to face climate change which can detrimentally influence crop production. To meet global food and feed requirements, considering the current climate change crisis, it is essential to recognize how plants respond and adapt their metabolism to environmental stresses.

Dr. Julietta Moustaka
Prof. Dr. Michael Moustakas
Topic Editors