Leveraging Plant Metabolites for Improved Crop Sustainability Under Environmental Stress

As global agricultural systems face increasing threats from environmental stresses including drought, salinity, pathogens, and pests, there is an urgent need to enhance crop resilience and sustainability. Plant metabolites, distinct as primary and secondary metabolites, play critical roles in plant defense systems. They impact growth, yield, and quality under stress conditions by modulating various physiological and molecular mechanisms. Despite their pivotal roles, a comprehensive understanding of these metabolites in stress mitigation remains limited, necessitating focused research to uncover their mechanisms of action and full potential.

This Research Topic seeks to elucidate the essential roles of plant metabolites in countering environmental stress. The objective is to compile cutting-edge research that deciphers the biochemical pathways, regulatory mechanisms, and enhances practical applications of these metabolites to boost plant resilience and performance under stress.

This issue will focus primarily on the multifaceted aspects of plant metabolites related to stress resilience:

• The impact of plant metabolites on mitigating effects of both abiotic and biotic stresses, and the implications for agricultural productivity.
• Detailed biochemical characterization of metabolites and their roles in plant physiology.
• Investigations into the molecular mechanisms by which metabolites influence plant stress responses.
• Empirical research from field or controlled environment experiments that elucidate the practical applications of metabolites in real-world agricultural settings.

Please note: Both field and controlled environment studies are welcome. Submissions focusing solely on plant growth, yield, or quality responses to treatments will be considered only if they provide significant insights into the physiological mechanisms underpinning these effects.

Keywords: Plant Metabolites, Environmental Stress Response, Crop Resilience, Biochemical Pathways, Abiotic and Biotic Stresses, Stress Tolerance Mechanisms

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.