This book explores the ways in which plants detect, interpret and respond to the natural light environment.

Plants utilize light not only for photosynthesis but also as environmental signals. They are capable of perceiving wavelength, intensity, direction, duration, and other attributes of light to perform appropriate physiological and developmental changes. This volume presents overviews of and the latest findings in many of the interconnected aspects of plant photomorphogenesis, including photoreceptors (phytochromes, cryptochromes, and phototropins), signal transduction, photoperiodism, and circadian rhythms, in 42 chapters. Also included, is a prologue by Prof. Masaki Furuya that gives an overview of the historical background. With contributions from preeminent researchers in specific subjects from around the world, this book will be a valuable source for a range of scientists from undergraduate to professional levels.

There are many recent works on the topic of light and plant growth. These have not only been written by experts, but are also, in the main, written for experts (or, at least, for those who already have a fair understanding of the subject). This book has its origins in a six-week course in plant photophysiology, and its aim is to provide an introduction to the subject at an advanced undergraduate level. The imagined audience is simply a student who has asked the questions: In what ways does light affect plant growth, and how does it do it? The book is limited to aspects of photomorphogenesis. Photo synthesis is only considered where its pigments impinge on photo morphogenic investigations, or where its processes provide illustrative examples of particular interactions between light and biological material. Chapter 1 gives a general account of the various ways in which light affects plant development, and introduces topics which are subsequently covered in greater detail. In all the chapters, are special topic 'boxes', consisting of squared-off sections of text. These are simply devices for presenting explanatory background material, or material that I myself find particularly intriguing.

Plant Responses to the Environment covers the fundamental mechanisms of plant responses to biotic and abiotic environmental stimuli. By combining established disciplines like physiology and genetics with new approaches stemming from molecular biology and biophysics, a new synthesis is achieved. For example, this book deals with the effects of microgravity on plant development, and it provides an extensive analysis of plant perception and response to low oxygen and high ozone. New techniques such as those used for gene transfer using the biolistic gene gun approach in soybeans are described. Other topics considered include systemic acquired resistance (SAR) in plants and recent advances in understanding how legume roots perceive bacterial lipooligosaccharide signals. A glossary, subject index, and author index are also provided. Plant Responses to the Environment will be a valuable reference for plant physiologists, ecophysiologists, agronomists, plant molecular biologists, experimental botanists, and other researchers interested in the topic.