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Drought tolerance

Ability of a plant to withstand dry conditions

  • 7 min read
  • 6 chapters

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The mechanisms behind drought tolerance are complex and involve many pathways which allows plants to respond to specific sets of conditions at any given time. Some of these interactions include stomatal conductance, carotenoid degradation and anthocyanin accumulation, the intervention of osmoprotectants (such as sucrose, glycine, and proline), ROS-scavenging enzymes. The molecular control of drought tolerance is also very complex and is influenced other factors such as environment and the developmental stage of the plant. This control consists mainly of transcriptional factors, such as dehydration-responsive element-binding protein (DREB), abscisic acid (ABA)-responsive element-binding factor (AREB), and NAM (no apical meristem).

Physiology of drought tolerance

Plants can be subjected to slowly developing water shortages (i.e., taking days, weeks, or months), or they may face short-term deficits of water (i.e., hours to days). In these situations, plants adapt by responding accordingly, minimizing water loss and maximizing water uptake. Plants are more susceptible to drought stress during the reproductive stages of growth, flowering and seed development. Therefore, the combination of short-term plus long-term responses allow for plants to produce a few viable seeds. Some examples of short-term and long-term physiological responses include:

Short-term responses

  • In the leaf: root-signal recognition, stomatal closure, decreased carbon assimilation
  • In the stem: inhibition of growth, hydraulic changes, signal transport, assimilation of transport
  • In the root: cell-drought signalling, osmotic adjustment

Long-term responses

  • In the above-ground portion of the plant: inhibition of shoot growth, reduced transpiration area, grain abortion, senescence, metabolic acclimation, osmotic adjustment, anthocyanin accumulation, carotenoid degradation, intervention of osmoprotectants, ROS-scavenging enzymes
  • In the below-ground portion of the plant: turgor maintenance, sustained root growth, increased root/shoot, increased absorption area

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