Chemistry Reference
In-Depth Information
Chapter 16
Recent Advances and Future Prospects
on Practical Use of Salicylic Acid
L. P. Popova
Abstract Plants are exposed to various pathogens, insects and different envi-
ronmental constrains. To counteract against these stresses, plants have evolved
defensive strategies. One very sophisticated strategy is to emit a variety of volatile
substances from flowers, fruits, and vegetative tissues. Volatile compounds act as a
language that plants use for communication and interaction with the surrounding
environment. The volatile blends emitted by plants can be manipulated by inter-
fering with the signal transduction pathways leading to volatile emissions. The
manipulation of the volatile emission of a plant using a chemical elicitor allows for
the investigation of the possible effects of plant volatiles on community ecology.
Many chemicals are critical for plant growth and development and play an
important role in integrating various stress signals and controlling downstream
stress responses by modulating gene expression machinery and regulating various
transporters/pumps and biochemical reactions. Signal molecules such as salicylic
acid, jasmonates and NO play key roles in the plants' defense responses. Their
defense pathways have been shown to cross-communicate, providing the plant
with a regulatory potential to fine-tune the defense reaction depending on the type
of attacker encountered. However, detailed understanding of the effects of these
chemicals on key physiological processes that determine plant productivity in
relation to stress tolerance is warranted prior to practical application. Furthermore
such studies may provide an insight into the molecular mechanisms governing
stress tolerance in plants and may also facilitate genetic engineering of plants to
tolerate stresses. The effects of SA on plant resistance to abiotic and biotic stresses
were found contradictionary, and the actual role of SA remains unresolved. The
dual role of salicylic acid on different physiological processes will be discussed in
this chapter. Another important objective of this study is to apply the potential of
SA as an effective tool in increasing plant production and quality. The agricultural
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