Transgenic plant tolerant to drought

Abstract

Drought is the single largest abiotic stress factor leading to reduced crop yields. Approximately one-third of the Earth’s land area is arid or semi-arid. The situation is aggravated by the shortage of water resources because of widespread water pollution and unpredictable climatic change. Water availability is particularly critical for agricultural crops to maintain high yields in variable growing seasons. Thus, agricultural drought, namely water deficiency, adversely affects plant and crop production by reducing leaf size, stem extension and root proliferation, disturbing plant water and nutrient relations, and inhibiting water-use efficiency. In recent years, many countries and international organizations have launched research projects on exploring the drought-tolerance and water-saving mechanisms of plants to identify key genes or tools for improving plant drought resistance.