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Undesirable environmental situations, namely, drought, extreme salinity, and temperature, are the most common abiotic stresses constantly challenge in various agricultural regions. These types of stress(s) ultimately result in yield loss to different crop species. Under the influence of abiotic stresses, most horticultural crop species (tomato, banana, soybean, etc.) induce activation of genes for stress physiology. Boosting up the level of heat shock proteins (HSPs)/chaperones in a diverse range of stresses signifies its importance in metabolic stress response. In plants it belonges to divergent classes and are homologous to prokaryotes and other eukaryotes. Chaperones are the essential mechanism under adverse conditions to maintain homeostasis at the cellular level. Interaction of molecular chaperones with misfolded or newly synthesized proteins assists proper folding of proteins. However, molecular chaperones like protein disulfide isomerase, cyclophilin, and calnexin/calreticulin, have also been found to activate defence response against abiotic stresses in various crop species. This activity specifies the importance of HSPs as stress-responsive cascade and therefore, considering its vital role in genome-wide studies in several crop species. The chaperone network's sensitive tuning and its reciprocal relationship with other cellular components are still yet to be researched to know the appropriate character and function of chaperones. In the present chapter, the emphasis has been given to describe the structure and characteristics of diverse HSP and plant-cell chaperones in the endoplasmic reticulum of various horticulture crops. We also describe the mechanism of molecular chaperon under adverse climatic conditions and during the accumulation of seed storage protein at the development phase of seeds.

Due to global warming, low water stress (drought) becomes a critical abiotic factor that adversely affect yield up to 50% in major horticultural crops. An insight into morpho-anatomical, physiological, and biochemical changes in drought-affected crops provides vital information to design the best strategy for reducing the influence of drought on horticultural crops. These strategies are determined by the capacity to enhance the root–nutrient relationship by reducing the deficit of soil moisture, lowering the drought impact, and accelerating the recovery process. Remedies and management strategies are being followed to cope with drought stress such as mulching, efficient irrigation, proper nutrient supply, application of plant growth–promoting rhizobacteria, and selection of climate-resilient varieties. The improvement in technologies paved the way for augmentation of drought-related genomics and transcriptomics studies, which further strengthens the quantitative trait loci mapping, genome-wide association studies, and genomic-selection strategies. Current drought stress–management technologies are based on the application of transgenic technology along with genome-editing tools for genetic modification of horticulture crops. The advancement in modern omics tools like genomics, proteomics, phenomics, and metabolomics has also enhanced the improvement of horticulture crops. Furthermore, these technologies have created new opportunities for the develop novel mitigation strategies for drought-prone horticultural crops. In the present chapter, we mainly focus on modern approaches in horticultural crops to mitigate the adverse effects of drought.