In the last half century, because of the raising world population and because of the many environmental issues posed by the industrialization, the amount of arable land per person has declined from 0.32 ha in 1961–1963 to 0.21 ha in 1997–1999 and is expected to drop further to 0.16 ha by 2030 and therefore is a severe menace to food security (FAO 2006). At the same time, about 12 million ha of irrigated land in the developing world has lost its productivity due to waterlogging and salinity. Waterlogging is a major problem for plant cultivation in many regions of the world. The reasons are in part due to climatic change that leads to the increased number of precipitations of great intensity, in part to land degradation. Considering India alone, the total area suffering from waterlogging is estimated to be about 3.3 million ha (Bhattacharya 1992), the major causes of waterlogging include super- ous irrigation supplies, seepage losses from canal, impeded sub-surface drainage, and lack of proper land development. In addition, many irrigated areas are s- jected to yield decline because of waterlogging due to inadequate drainage systems. Worldwide, it has been estimated that at least one-tenth of the irrigated cropland suffers from waterlogging.

This book provides all aspects of the physiology, stress responses and tolerance to abiotic stresses of the Brassicaceae plants. Different plant families have been providing food, fodder, fuel, medicine and other basic needs for the human and animal since the ancient time. Among the plant families, Brassicaceae has special importance for their agri-horticultural importance and multifarious uses apart from the basic needs. Interest understanding the response of Brassicaceae plants toward abiotic stresses is growing considering the economic importance and the special adaptive mechanisms. The knowledge needs to be translated into improved elite lines that can contribute to achieve food security. The physiological and molecular mechanisms acting on Brassicaceae introduced in this book are useful to students and researchers working on biology, physiology, environmental interactions and biotechnology of Brassicaceae plants.

Plant Signaling Molecule: Role and Regulation under Stressful Environments explores tolerance mechanisms mediated by signaling molecules in plants for achieving sustainability under changing environmental conditions. Including a wide range of potential molecules, from primary to secondary metabolites, the book presents the status and future prospects of the role and regulation of signaling molecules at physiological, biochemical, molecular and structural level under abiotic stress tolerance. This book is designed to enhance the mechanistic understanding of signaling molecules and will be an important resource for plant biologists in developing stress tolerant crops to achieve sustainability under changing environmental conditions. - Focuses on plant biology under stress conditions - Provides a compendium of knowledge related to plant adaptation, physiology, biochemistry and molecular responses - Identifies treatments that enhance plant tolerance to abiotic stresses - Illustrates specific physiological pathways that are considered key points for plant adaptation or tolerance to abiotic stresses

Abiotic Stress and Legumes: Tolerance and Management is the first book to focus on the ability of legume plants to adapt effectively to environmental challenges. Using the -omic approach, this book takes a targeted approach to understanding the methods and means of ensuring survival and maximizing the productivity of the legume plant by improving tolerance to environmental /abiotic stress factors including drought, temperature change, and other challenges. The book presents a comprehensive overview of the progress that has been made in identifying means of managing abiotic stress effects, specifically in legumes, including the development of several varieties which exhibit tolerance through high yield using transcriptomic, proteomic, metabolomic and ionomic approaches. Further, exogenous application of various stimulants such as plant hormones, nutrients, sugars, and polyamines has emerged as an alternative strategy to improve productivity under these environmental challenges. Abiotic Stress and Legumes: Tolerance and Management examines these emerging strategies and serves as an important resource for researchers, academicians and scientists, enhancing their knowledge and aiding further research. - Explores the progress made in managing abiotic stress, specifically with high yield legumes - Highlights the molecular mechanisms related to acclimation - Presents proven strategies and emerging approaches to guide additional research

Molecular oxygen deficiency leads to altered cellular metabolism and can dramatically reduce crop productivity. Nearly all crops are negatively affected by a lack of oxygen (hypoxia) due to adverse environmental conditions such as excessive rain and soil waterlogging. Extensive efforts to fully understand how plants sense oxygen deficiency and their ability to respond using different strategies are crucial to increase hypoxia tolerance. Progress in our understanding has been significant in recent years. This topic certainly deserves more attention from the academic community; therefore, we have compiled a series of articles reflecting the advancements made thus far.