Coping with Drought and Salinity Stresses: The Role of Transcription Factors in Crop Improvement

RIBICHICH KARINA FABIANA; ARCE, AGUSTÍN LUCAS; CHAN RAQUEL L.

Climate Change and Plant Abiotic Stress Tolerance

Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA

Lugar: Weinheim; Año: 2013; p. 641 - 684

Knowledge about the role of transcription factors in the eukaryotic domain, mainly in yeast, Drosophila , human, and later in plants, has significantly advanced since the first discovery of these regulatory proteins in prokaryotes 50 years ago. Transcription factors are involved in a variety of biological processes, including responses to environmental changes. In this chapter, we focus on plant transcription factors involved in the responses to abiotic stresses, mainly drought and salinity. We analyze the modular structure that characterizes common and kingdom-specific groups or families and the main environmental stimuli that modulate the responses through different signaling pathways. Thereafter, we review examples of the roles played by transcription factors in classical breeding approaches for crop improvement. Finally, we revise the discovery, characterization, and use of transcription factors as biotechnological tools. With regard to the last point, we discuss the experimental methods and parameters adopted to evaluate tolerant phenotypes, and the apparent dilemma between crop yield and stress tolerance.