Molecular Mechanisms and Genetic Variations in Plant Responses to Environmental Stresses
A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular Plant Sciences".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 March 2026 | Viewed by 8
Special Issue Editor
Interests: genetic breeding; grain and oil crops; saline-alkali soil characteristic plants; salt-alkali tolerance response; plant abiotic stress adaptation; agricultural biotechnology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Plants, as sessile organisms, are inevitably exposed to a wide range of environmental stresses, including abiotic stresses such as drought, salinity, extreme temperatures, and heavy metals. These stresses severely disrupt normal physiological metabolism, growth, and development, ultimately leading to significant reductions in crop productivity posing a serious threat to global food security. To cope with such adverse environmental conditions, plants have evolved intricate and precise regulatory systems to perceive stress signals, activate downstream molecular pathways, and trigger genetic and physiological responses that enhance their stress resistance or tolerance.
The primary objective of this Special Issue is to systematically and comprehensively explore the molecular mechanisms underlying plant responses to environmental stresses and to decipher the patterns of genetic variation associated with stress adaptation.
We warmly welcome original research articles, review papers, and short communications that focus on, although not exclusively, the following areas:
- Identification and functional characterization of key genes/proteins involved in plant stress response;
- Analysis of signaling pathways and regulatory networks mediating stress perception, transduction, and response;
- Investigation of epigenetic modifications in modulating plant stress adaptation;
- Exploration of genetic variation related to stress tolerance in natural populations or cultivated crops;
- Development of novel technologies or strategies for dissecting plant stress response mechanisms.
By integrating cutting-edge research in these areas, this Special Issue aims to provide new insights into the complex interplay between plants and the environment, and to lay a solid theoretical foundation for the genetic improvement of stress-resistant crops and the sustainable development of agriculture.
Dr. Zongchang Xu
Guest Editor
Manuscript Submission Information
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Keywords
- plant environmental stress response
- molecular mechanisms
- genetic variation
- stress signaling pathways
- epigenetic modifications
- stress-resistant crop genetic improvement
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