Crops experience an assortment of environmental stresses which include abiotic viz., drought, water logging, salinity, extremes of temperature, high variability in radiation, subtle but perceptible changes in atmospheric gases and biotic viz., insects, birds, other pests, weeds, pathogens (viruses and other microbes). The ability to tolerate or adapt and overwinter by effectively countering these stresses is a very multifaceted phenomenon. In addition, the inability to do so which renders the crops susceptible is again the result of various exogenous and endogenous interactions in the ecosystem. Both biotic and abiotic stresses occur at various stages of plant development and frequently more than one stress concurrently affects the crop. Stresses result in both universal and definite effects on plant growth and development. One of the imposing tasks for the crop researchers globally is to distinguish and to diminish effects of these stress factors on the performance of crop plants,especially with respect to yield and quality of harvested products. This is of special significance in view of the impending climate change, with complex consequences for economically profitable and ecologically and environmentally sound global agriculture. The challenge at the hands of the crop scientist in such a scenario is to promote a competitive and multifunctional agriculture, leading to the production of highly nourishing, healthy and secure food and animal feed as well as raw materials for a wide variety of industrial applications. In order to successfully meet this challenge researchers have to understand the various aspects of these stresses in view of the current development from molecules to ecosystems. The book will focus on broad research areas in relation to these stresses which are in the forefront in contemporary crop stress research.

Main objective is to deliver information for developing strategies to combat crop stress

Preface.- 1. Overview of plant stresses: Mechanisms, adaptations and research pursuit.- 1.1. Introduction.- 1.2. Stresses and their significance in crops.- 1.3. Improving stress tolerance - Conventional and Molecular approaches.- 1.4. Future outlook.- 1.5. References; Maheshwari. M. et al.- 2. Dryland Agriculture: Bringing resilience to crop production under changing climate.- 2.1. Introduction.- 2.2. Major Dryland agricultural regions of the world.- 2.3. Climate change scenario in drylands.- 2.4. Challenges to agricultural production in drylands under changing climate.- 2.5. Strategies to increase resilience to climate change in dryland agriculture.- 2.6. Conclusions and future directions.- 2.7. References ; Venkateshwarlu B., Arun K.Shanker.- 3. Abiotic and biotic stresses in Plantation Crops: Adaptation and Management.- 3.1. Introduction.- 3.2. Adaptation to abiotic stresses.- 3.3. Adaptation to biotic stresses.- 3.4. Management of stresses.- 3.5. Conclusions.- 3.6. References ; Vinod K.K.- 4. Enhancing productivity and performance of oil seed crops under environmental stresses.- 4.1. Introduction.- 4.2. The Relay: Sensing and Signaling.- 4.3. Defending Drought Stress.- 4.4. SnRK Family of Protein Kinases and Stress Response.- 4.5. Quantitative trait loci and temperature stress.- 4.5. Summary and Future Perspectives .- 4.6. References; Bhinu V.S. et al.- 5. Applications of Machine Learning for Maize Breeding for stress.- 5.1. Introduction.- 5.2. Machine Learning: An overview.- 5.3. Molecular breeding for drought tolerance.- 5.4. Mapping of QTLs (Quantitative trait loci).- 5.5. Final Considerations.- 5.6. References.- 5.7. Appendix: Support Vector Machines; Leonardo Ornella et al.- 6. Heat stress in rice ¿ physiological mechanisms and adaptation strategies.- 6.1. Introduction.- 6.2. Threshold temperature.- 6.3. Different changes along the phenological phases.- 6.4. Mechanism and induction of heat tolerance.- 6.5. Breeding strategies.- 6.6. Fertigation- a novel strategy.- 6.7. Energy economics under heat stress.- 6.8. Concluding remarks.- 6.9. References ; Kondamudi R. et al.- 7. Improvement of drought resistance in crops:From conventional breeding to genomic selection.- 7.1. The complexity of drought environments and plant adaptation.- 7.2. Assessment of drought tolerance in crops.- 7.3. Achievement of the conventional breeding in the last Century.- 7.4. Selection by secondary traits.- 7.5. Assessment of secondary traits.- 7.6. Molecular markers-assisted genetic improvement.- 7.7. Transgenic-assisted genetic enhancement.- 7.8. Conventional versus molecular breeding .- 7.9. Concluding remarks.- 7.10. References; Anna Maria Mastrangelo et al.- 8. Plant response and tolerance to abiotic oxidative stress: antioxidant defense is the key.- 8.1. Introduction.- 8.2. Abiotic stressors in plants.- 8.3. Production of reactive oxygen species in plants.- 8.4. Detoxification of ROS by the antioxidant defense system.- 8.5. Plant responses and antioxidant defense under major abiotic stresses.- 8.6. Transgenic approaches to enhance oxidative stress tolerance.- 8.7. Conclusion and future perspectives.- 8.8. References; Mirza Hasanuzzaman et al.- 9. Transcription Factors and Genes in Abiotic Stress.- 9.1. Introduction.- 9.2. Role of Transcription Factors in the activation of stress responsive genes.- 9.3. Drought.- 9.4. Flooding Stress.- 9.5. Salinity.- 9.6. High light stress.- 9.7. Ultraviolet-B (UVB) radiation.- 9.8. Cold Stress.- 9.9. Oxidative stress .- 9.10. References; Pasqualina Woodrow et al.- 10. Chlorophyll a fluorescence in abiotic stress.- 10.1. Introduction.- 10.2. Chlorophyll fluorescence: basic concept.- 10.3. Stress in relations to chlorophyll fluorescence.- 10.4. Concluding remarks.- 10.5. References; Lucia Guidi, Elena Degl¿Innocenti.- 11. Crop Stress and Aflatoxin Contamination: Perspectives and Prevention Strategies.- 11.1. Introduction.- 11.2. Significance of Aspergilli and Aflatoxins.- 11.3. Insect Herbivory Stress.- 11.4. Environmental Factors Cause Crop Stress.- 11.5. Crop Management Factors.- 11.6. Genetic Control Strategies.- 11.7. Further Researches.- 11.8. References; Baozhu Guo et al.- 12. Role of Ethylene and Plant Growth-Promoting Rhizobacteria in Stressed Crop Plants.- 12.1. Ethylene.- 12.2. Inhibitors of ethylene biosynthesis.- 12.3. Transgenic plants with expression of bacterial ACC-deaminase.- 12.4. Future prospects and applications.- 12.5. References; Baby Shaharoona et al.- 13. RNAi: Machinery and role in pest and disease management.- 13.1. Introduction.- 13.2. Biochemical properties of RNAi components.- 13.3. Small RNAs-Big roles.- 13.4. RNAi: virus resistance.- 13.5. RNAi: fungal resistance.- 13.6. RNAi : Insects resistance.- 13.7. Future perspectives.- 13.8. References; Surekha Agarwal et al.- 14. Conservation Biology.- 14.1. Introduction.- 14.2. Classical biocontrol ¿ the good, the bad and the ugly.- 14.3. Biodiversity and Biological control in ephemeral ecosystems.- 14.4. Functional significance of biodiversity in annual crops ¿ a case study of cotton and rice.- 14.5. The number game ¿ does it really count?.- 14.6. Enhancing eco-systems services.- 14.7. The road to take.- 14.8. References; Chitra Shanker et al.- 15. Postharvest biocontrol - New concepts and application.- 15.1. Initial Step.- 15.2. Mode of action of BCA¿s.- 15.3. Biocontrol agents can affect pathogenicity of fungal pathogens.- 15.4. Applications of molecular methods to biocontrol fungi and yeasts.- 15.5. Where We Stand and Where To Go.- 15.6. References; Neeta Sharma et al.- 16. Remote Sensing of Biotic Stress in Crop Plants and its Applications for Pest Management.- 16.1. Introduction.- 16.2. Principle of operation.- 16.3. Types of remote sensing platforms.- 16.4. Concept of spectral vegetation index.- 16.5. Ground based remote sensing of biotic stress.- 16.6. Airborne remote sensing of biotic stress.- 16.7. Space borne remote sensing of biotic stress.- 16.8. Conclusions.- 16.9. References; M. Prabhakar et al.- 17. Nematode Pathogens of Crops: Consequences of Climate Change.- 17.1. Introduction.- 17.2. Impact of climate change on plant pathogenic nematodes.- 17.3. Impact of Climate Change on Microbial feeding and Predatory Nematodes.- 17.4. Impact of Climate Change Insect Parasitic Nematodes.- 17.5. Climate Change, Ecosystem Disturbance and Nematode Model Systems.- 17.6. Conclusions.- 17.7. References; Nethi Somasekhar, Prasad J.S.- 18. Socio Economic and Policy Issues in Abiotic Stress Management.- 18.1. Introduction.- 18.2. Types and nature of abiotic stress.- 18.3. Land Degradation and Implications.- 18.4. Community actions for mitigation and coping mechanisms.- 18.5. Dealing with abiotic stress ¿ socio-economic dimensions.- 18.6. Public Policies for Communities and Regions Affected by Abiotic Stress.- 18.7. Conclusion.- 18.8. References; Kareemulla K., Rama Rao C.A.- 19. Changing roles of Agricultural Extension: Harnessing Information and Communications Technology (ICT) for adapting to changing climate.- 19.1. Introduction.- 19.2. ICTs and Extension in the Context of Climate Change.- 19.3. Climate Change Stresses: Information Needs.- 19.4. What ails information provision?.- 19.5. Driving the ICT use: Tech driven Need or Need Driven Tech?.- 19.6. ICTs in work ¿ Process of Combating Stresses: A Case of VASAT.- 19.7. ICT Enabled Extension for Climate Change: Towards a Comprehensive Framework.- 19.8. From Tactical Methods to Practical Approaches.- 19.9. Research-Extension-Farmers Linkages in Climate Change Scenario.- 19.10. Conclusion.- 19.11. References; Shaik N. Meera et al.- Index.