Every year, abiotic stress factors such as drought, heat, salinity or high light intensity —combined with unfavorable soil conditions caused by human activity (herbicides, pH changes, or various contaminants such as microplastics)— and especially the combination of these factors, lead to a decline in crop productivity worldwide. If this trend in our environment does not slow down or reverse, food supplies could be severely reduced.
A research team from the Eco-Physiology and Biotechnology Group at the Universitat Jaume I of Castelló, led by researcher Sara Izquierdo Zandalinas with the collaboration of José Luis Rambla Nebot, studies how complex combinations of these stress conditions affect the growth and survival of tomato plants. The team analyzes which plant responses are beneficial or harmful for acclimation to the environment, as well as the changes occurring in their metabolism, proteins and hormones.
According to the results obtained and published so far, the effects of combining different types of stress are extensive. They impact photosynthesis, growth, and also the accumulation of proline, an amino acid that, while beneficial for stress resistance, could have an adverse effect under multifactorial stress. The study also provided interesting evidence about the role of a specific polyamine (spermine) in plant tolerance to a particular combined stress (salinity and the herbicide paraquat).
