Summary
This review synthesises current knowledge on how drought stress affects photosynthesis in major food crops, examining damage to both light-dependent and light-independent reactions, photorespiration induction via stomatal closure, and ROS-mediated chloroplast damage. The authors detail multiple adaptive strategies plants employ—including non-photochemical quenching, cyclical electron transport, and hormone-mediated regulation—to maintain photosynthetic function under water limitation. The work emphasises that understanding these mechanisms is critical for breeding drought-resistant crop varieties and supporting agricultural sustainability in an increasingly variable climate.
Regional applicability
The review addresses global food security threats and mechanisms applicable across temperate and arid regions. United Kingdom farming faces increasing drought risk from climate change; these findings on photosynthetic resilience and genetic traits for drought tolerance are directly relevant to UK crop breeding programmes and long-term cereal production strategy.
Key measures
Photosynthetic efficiency; stomatal conductance; photosystem damage; reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation; chlorophyll content; electron transport chain function; non-photochemical quenching (NPQ); abscisic acid (ABA) and hormone levels
Outcomes reported
The review examines how drought stress impairs photosynthetic processes in major food crops through damage to photosystems, electron transport, and carbon fixation, whilst cataloguing plant adaptive strategies including non-photochemical quenching, alternative electron pathways, and hormone-mediated responses.
Topic tags
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