Chitosan is a natural biopolymer modified from chitins which act as a potential biostimulant and elicitor in agriculture. It is non-toxic, biodegradable and biocompatible which favors potentially broad application. It enhances the physiological response and mitigates the adverse effect of abiotic stresses through stress transduction pathway via secondary messenger(s). Chitosan treatment stimulates photosynthetic rate, stomatal closure through ABA synthesis; enhances antioxidant enzymes via nitric oxide and hydrogen peroxide signaling pathways, and induces production of organic acids, sugars, amino acids and other metabolites which are required for the osmotic adjustment, stress signaling, and energy metabolism under stresses. It is also known to form complexes with heavy metals and used as tool for phytoremediation and bioremediation of soil. Besides, this is used as antitranspirant compound through foliar application in many plants thus reducing water use and ensures protection from other negative effects. Based on such beneficial properties, chitosan is utilized in sustainable agricultural practices owing to changing climates. Our review gathers the recent information on chitosan centered upon the abiotic stress responses which could be useful in future crop improvement programs.
climate change is that most agricultural regions will experience additional extreme environmental fluctuations [2]. Direct injuries due to high temperatures include protein denaturation and aggregation and increased fluidity of membrane lipids. Indirect or slower heat injuries include inactivation of enzymes in chloroplast and mitochondria, inhibition of protein synthesis, protein degradation and loss of membrane integrity [3]. Heat stress also affects the organization of microtubules by splitting and/or elongation of spindles, formation of microtubule asters in mitotic cells and elongation of phragmoplast microtubules [4].The unfavourable effects of heat stress can be mitigated by developing crop plants with improved thermotolerance using an assortment of genetic approaches. For this reason, a thorough understanding of physiological responses of plants to high temperature, mechanisms of heat tolerance and possible strategies for improving crop thermotolerance is crucial. Acquiring thermotolerance is a lively progression by which considerable amounts of plant resources are diverted to structural and functional maintenance to escape damages caused by heat stress. Although biochemical and molecular aspects of thermotolerance in plants are relatively well understood, additional studies focused on phenotypic flexibility and assimilate partitioning under heat stress and factors modulating crop heat tolerance are imperative. High temperature during seed germination may slow down or totally inhibit germination, depending on plant species and the intensity of the stress [5]. At later stages, high IntroductionFuture global climate change, with predicted 1.5-5.8 °C increases in temperatures by 2100 has to cause heat stress to create threats to agricultural production [1]. An increase in global temperature ranging from 1.1 to 6.4 °C depending on global emissions scenarios, will accompany the rises in atmospheric CO 2 . Though high temperature and other abiotic stresses are clearly limiting factors for crops cultivated on marginal lands, crop productivity far and wide is often at the mercy of random environmental fluctuations. Existing assumption about global Heat Stress Responses and Thermotolerance AbstractThe rising ambient temperature by plant cells is crucial for the timely activation of various molecular defences before the appearance of heat damage. The heat-threshold level varies considerably at different developmental stages. With a view to survive under heat stress, mechanisms of regulation at the molecular level enable plants to prosper. Traditional breeding contributed for improving heat tolerance meagrely. The genetic transformation approach needs to be accelerated that can mitigate harmful effects by developing improved thermotolerance of crop plants. In this background, a thorough understanding of physiological responses of plants to high temperature, mechanisms of heat tolerance and possible strategies is vital. Temperature changes are sensed through cellular responses due to signal transduction into the c...
A compound of the coumarin class, 4-methyl-7-(tetradecanoyl)-2H-1-benzopyran-2-one, was evaluated for antifilarial activity against the human filarial parasite, Brugia malayi (sub-periodic strain) in Mastomys coucha. The test compound brought about a 24.4% reduction in circulating microfilaremia on day 8 after initiation of treatment when administered by the peritoneal route at a dose of 50 mg/kg for 5 consecutive days. The compound also caused a 62.0% mortality in adult parasites. Apart from killing adult filariids, it also brought about sterilization of 81.8% of the surviving female B. malayi. An oral dose of 200 mg/kg for 5 consecutive days was less effective (35.5% adulticidal efficacy and 65.8% sterilization). In vitro, the compound killed adult B. malayi at 100 microM concentration and inhibited DNA topoisomerase II activity in the filarial parasite. Studies are in progress using the compound in combination with standard antifilarials as well as other active agents.
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