Genomics-Based Analyses of Environmental Stresses in Crop Plants

The obligate sessile nature of plants imposes a considerable challenge with regard to their ability to adapt and thrive in the wake of rapid climate change disasters. This includes extremes of moisture stress – drought and flooding, temperature extremes – heat and cold, and atmospheric pollutants such as ozone. These climate change factors can significantly retard the phenology, physiology, and molecular programs of crop plants that in turn adversely impact the crop yields and hence represent a significant threat for global food security. On the brighter side, plants being resilient have evolved a gamut of adaptive mechanisms to thwart such catastrophes. In this chapter, we focus our attention on the molecular aspects of adaptive mechanisms in plants. In particular, we attempt to highlight the major findings from omics-based studies in response to climate change factors. We offer some perspectives on the need for integrated omics approaches and realistic field-level studies of stresses.