RESPONSE OF WHEAT PLANT TO DROUGHT STRESS: A REVIEW

Wheat is grown worldwide and staple food of large population both in developing as well as in developed countries. Increasing population demands its increased production every year but changing climate conditions, global warming and water shortage stagnant its production and made serious threats to food security. Drought is a very common environmental stresses that restricted the growth of the plant and to stand against the drought condition plant has different morphological, physiological, biochemical, anatomical and molecular developments. It includes closing of stomata, decrease in the activity of photosynthesis, root signal detection and loss of turgor pressure, osmotic adjustment, decrease in water potential, decreasing rate of CO2 conductance and internal concentration, increase in root shoot ratio, production of antioxidant species and DREBS transcription factor. Wheat genotypes with higher osmoregulators and lower malondialdehyde (MDA) perform better in water shortage condition. By understanding these mechanisms researchers are trying to develop new wheat genotypes those having less amount of water use. Different management practices are also useful to combat the drought stress like sowing early maturing varieties, irrigation management, weeds managements.