Plants grow and develop by adjusting their physiology to changes in their environment. Changes in the abiotic environment occur over years, seasons, and days, but also over minutes and even seconds. In this ever-changing environment, plants may adjust their structure and function rapidly to optimize growth and reproduction. Plant responses to reiterated drought (i.e., repeated cycles of drought) differ from those to single incidences of drought; in fact, in nature, plants are usually exposed to repeated cycles of drought that differ in duration and intensity. Nowadays, there is increased interest in better understanding mechanisms of plant response to reiterated drought due, at least in part, to the discovery of epigenomic changes that trigger drought stress memory in plants. Beyond epigenomic changes, there are, however, other aspects that should be considered in the study of plant responses to reiterated drought: from changes in other “omics” approaches (transcriptomics, proteomics, and metabolomics), to changes in plant structure; all of which may help us to better understand plant stress memory and its underlying mechanisms. Here, we present an example in which reiterated drought affects the pigment composition of leaves in the ornamental plant Silene dioica and discuss the importance of structural changes (in this case in the photosynthetic apparatus) for the plant response to reiterated drought; they represent a stress imprint that can affect plant response to subsequent stress episodes. Emphasis is placed on the importance of considering structural changes, in addition to physiological adjustments at the “omics” level, to understand stress memory in plants better.

Melatonin (N‐acetyl‐5methoxytryptamine) is an amphiphilic low‐molecular‐weight compound found in evolutionary distant living organisms, from bacteria to mammals. It can be synthesized by plants and acts as a potent antioxidant and/or a regulator of plant growth and development. Here, we investigated the role of melatonin in plant response to drought stress and recovery in maize (Zea mays L.) plants, with an emphasis on its possible photoprotective and antioxidant role and/or signalling function in relation to the stress‐related phytohormones, abscisic acid, salicylic acid and jasmonic acid. Results show a positive correlation between endogenous contents of melatonin and photoprotection, as indicated by the maximum efficiency of photosystem II photochemistry (Fv/Fm ratio), which was confirmed further by exogenous application of melatonin during recovery from drought stress. Melatonin applications during drought recovery improved the Fv/Fm ratio in maize plants exposed to a subsequent drought stress. Furthermore, endogenous contents of melatonin positively correlated with those of stress‐related phytohormones, particularly with those of salicylic acid, although exogenous application of melatonin did not alter the contents of these defence compounds. It is concluded that melatonin can exert a defensive role in maize plants exposed to drought stress, particularly improving the efficiency of photosystem II photochemistry.

Although plant responses to drought stress have been studied in detail in several plant species, including CAM plants, the occurrence of stress memory and possible mechanisms for its regulation are still very poorly understood. In an attempt to better understand the occurrence and possible mechanisms of regulation of stress memory in plants, we measured the concentrations of phytohormones in Aptenia cordifolia exposed to reiterated drought, together with various stress indicators, including leaf water contents, photosynthesis and mechanisms of photo- and antioxidant protection. Results showed that plants exposed to drought stress responded differently if previously challenged with a first drought. Gibberellin levels decreased upon exposure to the first drought and remained lower in double-stressed plants compared with those exposed to stress for the first time. In contrast, abscisic acid levels were higher in double- than single-stressed plants. This occurred in parallel with alterations in hydroperoxide levels, but not with malondialdehyde levels, thus suggesting an increased oxidation state that did not result in oxidative damage in double-stressed plants. It is concluded that (i) drought stress memory occurs in double-stressed A. cordifolia plants, (ii) both gibberellins and abscisic acid may play a role in plant response to repeated periods of drought, and (iii) changes in abscisic acid levels in double-stressed plants may have a positive effect by modulating changes in the cellular redox state with a role in signalling, rather than cause oxidative damage to the cell.

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