Drought Tolerance in Crops

Abstract

Drought is one of the most severe abiotic stresses limiting global crop productivity, affecting approximately 26% of the world’s arable land. Climate change has increased the frequency and severity of drought events, threatening food security in many regions. Drought stress in plants leads to physiological water deficiency, disrupting growth, photosynthesis, nucleic acid and protein synthesis, and nitrogen metabolism. To cope with drought conditions, plants employ multiple resistance strategies, including drought escape, dehydration avoidance, and dehydration tolerance. Morphological adaptations such as enhanced root systems, reduced leaf area, and stomatal modifications, along with physiological and biochemical mechanisms like osmotic adjustment, antioxidant activity, and stress protein synthesis, contribute to drought tolerance. Addressing drought stress in agriculture requires an integrated approach combining molecular tools, morpho-physiological

analyses, and conventional breeding strategies to develop drought- resistant crop varieties and ensure food security in the face of global

climate change.