Plant Physiology Reports - Special Issue: Abiotic and biotic stresses and their interactions in plants: concepts and mechanisms

Abiotic and biotic stresses and their interactions in plants: concepts and mechanisms

In the natural environment, plants often face numerous challenges especially exposure to a combination of several abiotic and biotic stresses resulting in significant reduction in productivity and overall yield. The existing literature has documented over 120 combined stresses, and it is likely that the actual number is even higher. In light of this, we are excited to announce a special issue that invites researchers from various disciplines of agriculture/plant sciences to submit their work in the form of short communications, full-length research manuscripts, and review articles.

Our focus is specifically on articles that investigate the interactions and effects of combined stresses, whether they involve as combinations of biotic+biotic or abiotic+abiotic, or abiotic+biotic stresses. We are particularly interested in understanding how these combined stresses impact plant responses and adaptations, rather than studying individual stress factors in isolation. Additionally, we welcome articles that explore the utilization of simulation models and other machine learning (ML) tools in the field of combined stress research, as these approaches have the potential to enhance our understanding of complex stress interactions.

Furthermore, we strongly encourage the submission of articles that delve into the mechanisms underlying trans-generational effects, epigenetic changes, and stress memory in plants. These aspects contribute significantly to our comprehension of combined stresses and their long-term implications. We particularly invite studies that employ techniques such as dual RNA-Seq and other omics approaches, including metabolomics and proteomics to analyze the molecular responses of plants affected by combined stresses.

To efficiently advance the development of combined stress-tolerant crops that can thrive in diverse field conditions, it is crucial to promote collaboration and integration among experts in various fields. These fields include crop modeling, crop physiology, biochemistry, biotechnology, plant breeding/genetics, plant pathology, entomology, agronomy, and bioinformatics. Hence, we strongly encourage researchers from these diverse backgrounds to contribute their expertise and knowledge to this special issue.

The interaction between two stress conditions can result in either negative or positive effects on plant growth and productivity. Hence, we welcome articles that explore both directions of these interactions, elucidating the underlying mechanisms and their implications for plant responses.

We invite research articles that address the following topics:

• The role of genomic tools in the development of combined stress-tolerant crops. 
• Identification and characterization of traits that can be utilized for screening genotypes for combined stress responses. 
• Delineation of shared and unique molecular responses and physiological mechanisms in plants exposed to combined stresses. 
• Investigation of the crosstalk between defense responses to abiotic and biotic stresses and its extrapolation to the combined stress response.

For review articles, we seek comprehensive discussions that establish the concepts based on current research and provide future directions on combined stress biology research. If you are a team lead interested in contributing a focused review or opinion article to this special issue, please reach out to skmuthappa@nipgr.ac.in (this opens in a new tab). All review and opinion articles will be approved and commissioned by the special issue editorial committee.

Deadline for submission of articles: 30 Sep 2023

Please follow the submission guidelines  https://www.springer.com/journal/40502/submission-guidelines (this opens in a new tab) and submit the manuscripts through editorial manager https://www.editorialmanager.com/inpp/default2.aspx (this opens in a new tab)

Guest Editors

Dr. Muthappa Senthil-Kumar is an esteemed scientist and research group leader at the National Institute of Plant Genome Research in New Delhi. With a dedicated focus on understanding the responses of plants to combined stress, he has been actively involved in this field for the past 15 years. Dr. Muthappa's research has made significant contributions, particularly in unraveling the influence of abiotic factors like drought stress on plant-pathogen interactions, which is recognized as one of the top 10 unanswered questions in this area of study. In recognition of his contributions, Dr. Muthappa has been honored as a Fellow of the National Academy of Agricultural Sciences (NAAS), as well as a Fellow of the National Academy of Sciences India (NASI). His expertise has earned him prestigious fellowships such as the DBT-Ramalingaswami Re-entry Fellowship, SERB-Ramanujan Fellowship, and DBT-Innovative Young Biotechnologist Award, among others. Throughout his career, Dr. Muthappa has edited four books within his research domain. He has also published over 80 scientific articles on the topic in reputable journals and contributed 15 book chapters, showcasing the depth and breadth of his research output. His work has garnered considerable attention, with his published articles amassing a total of > 6600 citations and an impressive h-index of 40. For more information about Dr. Muthappa and his research group, please visit their lab webpages at http://www.nipgr.res.in/research/dr_skmuthappa.php (this opens in a new tab) and https://nipgr.ac.in/scipdb.php. Additionally, a comprehensive list of his publications can be accessed at https://scholar.google.co.in/citations?user=vmbK4UMAAAAJ&hl=en (this opens in a new tab).

One editor from abroad is expected to be included. 

Dr. Ramegowda Venkategowda, UAS, GKVK Bangalore

Dr. Ramegowda is an accomplished Assistant Professor at the University of Agricultural Sciences, Bangalore. With a focus on the molecular basis of abiotic stress tolerance in plants, he conducts cutting-edge research employing genetic, genomic, and molecular tools. His expertise lies in investigating the responses of rice plants to combined drought and heat stress using advanced approaches such as transcriptomics, metabolomics, and transgenic methods. Utilizing the institution's exceptional phenomics facility, Dr. Ramegowda's team aims to identify key genes that contribute to water use efficiency (WUE) by precisely monitoring rice's water utilization. Furthermore, Dr. Ramegowda possesses extensive knowledge in comprehending crop responses, particularly in terms of grain quality, to high day/night temperatures. Over the course of his impressive 13-year career, he has published 32 peer-reviewed articles and holds two patents, earning him an impressive h-index of 21 and 3271 citations. His contributions to the scientific community extend beyond his research work, as he actively serves as an Academic Editor for PLOS ONE, an Editorial Board and Section Board Member for Agriculture, and a Review Editor for Frontiers in Plant Science. Dr. Ramegowda's multifaceted expertise and contributions make him a highly regarded figure in the field of plant sciences. Email: ram.hv@uasbangalore.edu.in

Dr. Senthil Alagarswamy, TNAU, Coimbatore

Dr. Senthil Alagarswamy, a distinguished Professor of Crop Physiology, is actively engaged in research on combined stresses and the improvement of nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) and yield in rice and minor millets. His work primarily revolves around unraveling the physiological and molecular aspects of C4 photosynthetic mechanisms and abiotic stress tolerance in cereals and millets. Dr. Alagarswamy has received specialized training in phenotyping crop plants for abiotic stress tolerance from prestigious institutions such as IRRI in the Philippines and INRA in France. With his extensive experience, Dr. Alagarswamy has made significant contributions to enhancing drought tolerance in rice for water-limited environments. He has employed marker-assisted selection and QTL introgression techniques in his research, collaborating with organizations like IRRI-India network, the Rockefeller Foundation, and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. His notable achievements include his involvement in the evaluation and release of PMK 4 (Anna 4), a widely recognized drought-tolerant rice variety in Tamil Nadu. During his time as a Visiting Research Fellow at IRRI in the Philippines, he also worked on the transformation of lowland rice with DREB genes and evaluated the resulting transformed rice for environmental stress tolerance. Dr. Alagarswamy's expertise extends to multiple stresses, and he actively contributes to the advancement of combined stress tolerance in plants. Recognized for his outstanding research contributions, he was honored with the Rao Birendra Singh gold medal as the best Ph.D. student in Crop Physiology. He has authored a textbook, edited five books, contributed 25 book chapters, and published 45 research articles in esteemed national and international journals. Email: senthil.a@tnau.ac.in