Genomics, Proteomics and Metabolic Approaches against Abiotic Stress

Abiotic stressors such as drought, salination, flooding, cold, heat, ultraviolet radiation, heavy metals, etc., are the paramount cause that reduce crop yield and weaken universal food security as they strongly affect plant growth, physiology, and metabolism. Plants frequently face a large number of environmental stressors and usually generate common responses to deal with these unfavorable conditions. However, crop improvement against abiotic stressors is one of the urgent priorities that need undivided attention, while a huge increase in demand for various plant-derived products will rise in the near future owing to the rising human population. As conventional methods for crop enhancement have limitations, therefore an epoch of omic research has shot up with new and encouraging perspectives in breeding to improve the crops against abiotic stress. In this light, the genomic, proteomic, and metabolomic approaches are emerging as powerful tools for the identification and description of cellular networks through which stress perception, signal transduction, and defensive responses are exhibited. Further advances in omic techniques have permitted a comprehensive investigation of crop genomes and have magnified the perception of convolution of the mechanisms controlling abiotic stressor tolerance and the adaptation to mitigate them. This chapter will give an overview of genomics, proteomics, and metabolic approaches and their usage to enhance the possibility of producing abiotic stressor tolerant crops.

Keywords: Abiotic stress, Genome, Metabolome, Proteome