Salinity Stress in Plants: Challenges in View of Physiological Aspects

Abstract

Increasing the worldwide population, the food supply has become a global crisis due to the existence of various environmental stresses. Salinity after drought is one of the devastating environmental stresses that affects about 50% of the world’s agricultural lands. It is considered as one of the important abiotic stresses that cause plant growth restriction in different stages such as seed germination, photosynthesis, hormonal regulation, nutrient uptake, and seed quality and quantity. Under salinity conditions, plants undergo numerous changes as morphological (early flowering, prevention of lateral shoot development, and root adaptations), physiological (Na+/K+ discrimination, osmotic adjustment, ion homeostasis, and stomatal responses), and biochemical (accumulation of polyamines, antioxidant activity, proline, and change the hormone level). With the ever-increasing expansion of saline lands and highly costs spending for their rehabilitation, the preparation of high-yielding lines/genotypes tolerant to salinity will be of particular importance. Being aware of various pathways involved in plant resistance to salinity stress can be an effective tool to increase crop production and cultivated area in different parts of the world.