Impact of Ozone on Crops

Tropospheric O3 has a negative impact on growth, development, and productivity of crops. Effects of O3 have been observed in a wide range of physiological characteristics, such as accelerated senescence, decreased photosynthetic assimilation, decreased productivity, and reduced carbon allocation to roots. Different responses to O3 have been observed in related species and, hence, it is thought that the initial mechanism of O3-induced stress on crops is uniform. A better understanding of the effect of O3 and O3-generated reactive oxygen species is necessary for an insight into the impact of O3 in crops. A great effort must be made in order to decrease the concentrations of O3 air pollution. In the absence of an effective emission control of O3 precursors, it is expected that ambient O3 concentration will increase in the future. The responses of crops to increased tropospheric O3 level could play an important role in determining crop yielding. Given that O3-induced stress imposes considerable constraints on crop yield production, there is a need for continuous research in this area. More work is necessary to better our understanding of signal pathway and gene expression implicated in O3 responses.