Abiotic Stress Tolerance in Crop Plants: Physio-biochemical and Molecular Mechanisms

Submission Deadline: 31 July 2025 View: 270 Submit to Special Issue

Guest Editors

A/Prof. Ahmed El Moukhtari

Email: elmoukhtari.ahmed94@gmail.com 

Affiliation: Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences Ben M’Sick, Hassan II University, Casablanca, PB 7955, MOROCCO

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Research Interests: abiotic stress, crop tolerance, plant physiology, plant biochemistry, transcription factors, molecular biology

Prof. Mohamed Farissi

Email: farissimohamed@gmail.com 

Affiliation: Department of Biology, Polydisciplinary Faculty of Beni Mellal, Sultan Moulay Slimane University, Beni Mellal, PB 23000, MOROCCO

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Research Interests: abioticctress, crop tolerance, transcription factors, biostimulant-biofertilizers, plant physiology, tolerance mechanisms

Summary

Abiotic stresses, such as drought, heavy metals, salinity, nutrient deficiency, and extreme temperatures, are among the most common adverse threats that restrict land use for agriculture and limit crop growth and productivity. As sessile organisms, plants protect themselves from abiotic stresses by developing various tolerance mechanisms governed by several biochemical traits. These biochemicals are the products of key genes expressed under specific conditions. Interestingly, the expression of these genes is regulated by specialized proteins known as transcription factors (TFs). In fact, by binding to particular DNA sequences, TFs could act as molecular switches to either repressing or activating the transcription of the targeted genes. Moreover, previous studies have evidenced the critical role of TFs in regulating plant growth and development, morphogenesis, and responses to environmental changes. Thus, understanding the occurrence and interactions of molecular and physio-biochemical changes has been considered an interesting research area that could help in improving crop abiotic stress tolerance. In this regard, this special issue welcomes original research, reviews, and mini-reviews that highlight the latest exciting progress on the physio-biochemical and molecular levels of the adaptation of crop plants to abiotic constraints. Potential subjects for this topic include (but are not limited to):

· Climate change resilience of crops

· Growth and productivity of crops in the context of climate changes

· Physio-biochemical and molecular adaptations of crop plants to abiotic stress

· Identification of stress-responsive TFs, regulation networks, and their mechanisms of action under abiotic stress

· TFs and transgenic crops

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