Genetic, Epigenetic and Metabolic Regulation in Plant Responses to the Environment

Dear Colleagues,

Plants are sessile organisms characterized by a high degree of metabolic and phenotypic plasticity. Because they are unable to escape their surroundings, plants must cope with variable and sometimes challenging growth conditions that influence their development, reproduction, fitness, and productivity. In addition, climate change could expose plants to multiple or more severe stresses and novel combinations of climatic and non-climatic conditions that reduce plant’s capacity for adaptation and performance. In response to environmental stimuli, the regulation of gene expression relies on a variety of molecular mechanisms that affect different stages in the flow of genetic information, inducing changes in mRNA transcription, processing, transport, translation, and decay. Gene expression can also be finely tuned by epigenetic regulatory mechanisms, including DNA methylation, histone modification, the exchange of histone variants, interactions between non-coding RNAs, ATP-dependent nucleosome remodeling and noncoding RNAs, that can change the activity and expression patterns of genes. Changing the gene expression can result in a remodeling of the metabolic profile of plants, leading to the production, accumulation, or degradation of molecules in response to changing environmental and developmental demands. This includes the intricate crosstalk of different signalling molecules, from phytohormones to membrane lipids, ROS, cyclic nucleotides, polyamines, and a diverse series of downstream processes.

Accordingly, this Special Issue primarily focuses on understanding the genetic, epigenetic and metabolic regulation of plant responses to various environmental stresses (such as heat, drought, and light stress), and the epigenetic mechanisms of stress memory.

Studying the genetic, epigenetic, and metabolic regulation(s) of plants and unravelling their effects at the biochemical, physiological, and phenotype levels is crucial to understanding how plants survive and reproduce in unpredictable environments.

Prof. Dr. Matteo Busconi
Prof. Dr. Luigi Lucini
Dr. Leilei Zhang
Guest Editors

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• challenging environment
• plant development
• reproduction
• adaptation
• genetic regulation
• epigenetic regulation
• metabolic regulation
• plant signaling