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Climate-change-induced variations in temperature and rainfall patterns are a serious threat across the globe. Flooding is the foremost challenge to agricultural productivity, and it is believed to become more intense under a changing climate. Flooding is a serious form of stress that significantly reduces crop yields, and future climatic anomalies are predicted to make the problem even worse in many areas of the world. To cope with the prevailing flooding stress, plants have developed different morphological and anatomical adaptations in their roots, aerenchyma cells, and leaves. Therefore, researchers are paying more attention to identifying developed and adopted molecular-based plant mechanisms with the objective of obtaining flooding-resistant cultivars. In this review, we discuss the various physiological, anatomical, and morphological adaptations (aerenchyma cells, ROL barriers (redial O2 loss), and adventitious roots) and the phytohormonal regulation in plants under flooding stress. This review comprises ongoing innovations and strategies to mitigate flooding stress, and it also provides new insights into how this knowledge can be used to improve productivity in the scenario of a rapidly changing climate and increasing flood intensity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drought stress is an inevitable factor that disturbs the production of plants by altering morphological, physiological, biochemical, and molecular functions. Breeding for drought tolerance requires a complete understanding of the molecular factors controlling stress-responsive pathways. The plant responds to drought stress by adopting four mechanisms: avoidance, escape, tolerance, and recovery. Traditional plant-breeding tools have been employed to increase tolerance in cotton, but the complexity of drought tolerance has limited the use of these breeding methods. The plant adopts several key strategies against drought stress, such as activating the signaling network and activating molecular factors. Cotton breeders have been engaged in elucidating the molecular mechanisms of drought tolerance in cotton using significant molecular tools such as quantitative trait loci (QTL) mapping, transcription factor (TFs) analysis, transcriptome analysis, genome-wide association studies (GWAS), genetic engineering, and CRISPR/Cas9. Breeders have studied the functional description of genes and the interacting pathways accountable for controlling drought tolerance in cotton. Hundreds of genes/QTL have been identified, and many have been cloned for drought tolerance in cotton; however, a complete understanding of these traits still needs more study. This review presents a detailed overview of molecular tools, their application for improving drought tolerance in cotton, and their prospects. This review will help future researchers to conduct further studies to develop drought-tolerant cotton genotypes that can thrive under conditions of water scarcity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Moringa oleifera Lam. is a common edible plant, famous for several nutritional and therapeutic benefits. This study investigates the salt -induced modulations in plant growth, physio-biochemical responses, and antioxidant performance of M. oleifera grown under 0, 50, and 100 mM NaCl concentrations. Results showed that the plant effectively managed moderate salinity (50 mM NaCl) by maintaining succulence, weight ratios, and biomass allocation patterns of both shoot and root with minimal reduction in dry biomass. However, high salinity (100 mM NaCl) remarkably declined all growth parameters. The plant accumulated more Na+ and Cl−, while less K+ under salinity as compared to the control. Consequently, osmotic potentials of both root and leaf decreased under salinity, which was corroborated by the high amount of proline and soluble sugars. Increased level of H2O2 with significantly unchanged membrane fluidity indicating its role in perceiving and managing stress at moderate salinity. In addition, increased activities of superoxide dismutase, and catalase, with increased glutathione and flavonoid contents suggest an integrated participation of both enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidant components in regulating ROS. On the other hand, high salinity caused an outburst of ROS indicated by high H2O2, MDA, and electrolyte leakage. As a response, moringa drastically increased the activities of all antioxidant enzymes and contents of antioxidant molecules including ascorbic acid, glutathione, total phenols, and flavonoids with high radical scavenging and reducing power capacities. However, a considerable amount of energy was used in such management resulting in a significant growth reduction at 100 mM NaCl. This study suggests that moringa effectively resisted moderate salinity by modulating physio-biochemical attributes and effectively managing ion toxicity and oxidative stress. Salt stress also enhanced the medicinal potentials of moringa by increasing the contents of antioxidant compounds including ascorbic acid, glutathione, total phenols, and flavonoids and their resulting activities. It can be grown on degraded/ saline lands and biomass of this plant can be used for edible and medicinal purposes, besides providing other benefits in a global climate change scenario. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tomato is one of the most significant vegetable crops, which provides several important dietary components. Pakistan has a significant low tomato yield compared to other countries because of low genetic diversity and the absence of improved cultivars. The present study aimed to investigate the genetic variability, heritability, and genetic advance for yield and yield-related traits in tomato. For this purpose, eight tomato parents and their 15 crosses or hybrids were evaluated to study the relevant traits. Significant variation was observed for all studied traits. Higher values of the genotypic coefficient of variability (GCV) and phenotypic coefficient of variability (PCV) were recorded for yield per plant (YP) (kg) (37.62% and 37.79%), as well as the number of fruits per cluster (NFRC) (31.52% and 31.71%), number of flowers per cluster (24.63 and 24.67), and single fruit weight (g) (23.49 and 23.53), which indicated that the selection for these traits would be fruitful. Higher heritability (h2) estimates were observed for the number of flowers per cluster (NFC) (0.99%), single fruit weight (SFW) (g) (0.99%), and yield per plant (YP) (kg) (0.99%). Single fruit weight (SFW) (g) exhibited higher values for all components of variability. High genetic advance as a % of the mean (GAM) coupled with higher heritability (h2) was noted for the yield per plant (YP) (kg) (52.58%) and the number of fruits per cluster (NFRC) (43.91). NFRC and SFW (g) had a highly significant correlation with YP (kg), while FSPC had a significant positive association with YP (kg), and these traits can be selected to enhance YP (kg). Among the 15 hybrids, Nagina × Continental, Pakit × Continental, and Roma × BSX-935 were selected as highyielding hybrids for further evaluation and analysis. These findings revealed that the best performing hybrids could be used to enhance seed production and to develop high-yielding varieties. The parents could be further tested to develop hybrids suitable for changing climatic conditions. The selection of YP (kg), SFW (g), NFC, and NFRC would be ideal for selecting the best hybrids. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abiotic stresses are one of the significant threats to soybean (Glycine max L.) growth and yields worldwide. Soybean has a crucial role in the global food supply chain and food security and contributes the main protein share compared to other crops. Hence, there is a vast scientific saddle on soybean researchers to develop tolerant genotypes to meet the growing need of food for the huge population. A large portion of cultivated land is damaged by salinity stress, and the situation worsens yearly. In past years, many attempts have increased soybean resilience to salinity stress. Different molecular techniques such as quantitative trait loci mapping (QTL), genetic engineering, transcriptome, transcription factor analysis (TFs), CRISPR/Cas9, as well as other conventional methods are used for the breeding of salt-tolerant cultivars of soybean to safeguard its yield under changing environments. These powerful genetic tools ensure sustainable soybean yields, preserving genetic variability for future use. Only a few reports about a detailed overview of soybean salinity tolerance have been published. Therefore, this review focuses on a detailed overview of several molecular techniques for soybean salinity tolerance and draws a future research direction. Thus, the updated review will provide complete guidelines for researchers working on the genetic mechanism of salinity tolerance in soybean. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The progressive increase in the earth's temperature due to anthropogenic activities is a major concern for humanity. The ensuing heat stress (HS) severely impacts plant growth, endangering ecosystem quality and world food security. Plant growth, physiological processes and final amount of edible products are affected by HS to an extent that reflects the physical damages, physiological commotions and biochemical alterations incurred at various growth stages. Therefore, a better understanding of plant behaviour in response to HS has pragmatic implications for devising counter-measures, alleviation strategies, and for acknowledging the differences between HS and the companion drought stress. Conventional breeding, biotechnological and molecular approaches are used to develop HS tolerant genotypes in plant species bred for food/feed uses. Recent achievements in the omics techniques result in a better knowledge of the molecular mechanisms involved in HS. However, shrewd management of crop practices is still helpful to improve plant resilience to HS. Suitable sowing time, seed priming, bacterial seed treatment, nutrient and water management, exogenous application of osmo-protectants, and conservation of soil moisture are important tools to improve plant behaviour under the critical HS scenarios determined by climate change and global warming. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Global climate change is predicted to increase exogenous N input into terrestrial ecosystems, leading to significant changes in soil C-cycling. However, it remains largely unknown how these changes affect soil C-cycling, especially in semi-arid grasslands, which are one of the most vulnerable ecosystems. Here, based on a 3-year field study involving N additions (0, 25, 50, and 100 kg ha−1 yr−1 of urea) in a semi-arid grassland on the Loess Plateau, we investigated the impact of urea fertilization on plant characteristics, soil properties, CO 2 and CH 4 emissions, and microbial C cycling genes. The compositions of genes involved in C cycling, including C fixation, degradation, methanogenesis, and methane oxidation, were determined using metagenomics analysis. We found that N enrichment increased both above- and belowground biomasses and soil organic C content, but this positive effect was weakened when excessive N was input (N100). N enrichment also altered the C-cycling processes by modifying C-cycle-related genes, specifically stimulating the Calvin cycle C-fixation process, which led to an increase in the relative abundance of cbbS , prkB , and cbbL genes. However, it had no significant effect on the Reductive citrate cycle and 3-hydroxypropionate bi-cycle. N enrichment led to higher soil CO 2 and CH 4 emissions compared to treatments without added N. This increase showed significant correlations with C degradation genes (bglA , per , and lpo), methanogenesis genes (mch, ftr, and mcr), methane oxidation genes (pmoA , pmoB , and pmoC), and the abundance of microbial taxa harboring these genes. Microbial C-cycling genes were primarily influenced by N-induced changes in soil properties. Specifically, reduced soil pH largely explained the alterations in methane metabolism, while elevated available N levels were mainly responsible for the shift in C fixation and C degradation genes. Our results suggest that soil N enrichment enhances microbial C-cycling processes and soil CO 2 and CH 4 emissions in semi-arid ecosystems, which contributes to more accurate predictions of ecosystem C-cycling under future climate change. • Urea fertilization increased CO 2 and CH 4 emissions in semi-arid grasslands. • Urea fertilization enhanced microbial C-cycling by altering C-related genes. • Microbial C fixation and C degradation genes were mainly driven by available N. • Microbial methane metabolism genes were mainly driven by pH. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]