Understanding Transcription Factors in Plant Response to Drought Stress

Increasing sensitivity of plants to abiotic and biotic stress such as drought, salt and extreme temperatures poses a worldwide peril to sustained growth and productivity of crops. Decrease in crop produce corresponds to increase in food prices and lower monetary return for farmers. In view of this, developing drought tolerance cultivars arises as the most viable solution toward enhancing crop productivity in adverse environment conditions. Therefore, it is imperative to identify the key regulators of water stress in plants and develop new varieties with improved drought stress tolerance. Drought tolerance is now well understood to be regulated by multiple genes, including transcription factors (TFs) that enable plants to tolerate harsh conditions and these genes remain viable genetic options for crop breeding. Plants have evolved various mechanisms to respond to various stressors which involve many transcription factors (TFs) like WRKY, TCP, DOF, HSF and NF-Ys. They participate in activation of various signalling pathways that protect cells against the damages caused by both abiotic and biotic stress. This review summarizes the role of such TF families in drought stress and provides insights for development of stress-tolerance in plants.