ABA Regulation of the Cold Stress Response in Plants - Abscisic Acid: Metabolism, Transport and Signaling - page 327

Chapter 17
ABA Regulation of the Cold Stress
Response in Plants

Yiting Shi and Shuhua Yang

Abstract Low temperature is a major environmental factor that limits plant
growth, productivity, and distribution. To ensure optimal growth and survival,
plants must respond and adapt to cold stress using a variety of biochemical and
physiological processes. Currently, the most thoroughly understood cold-signal-
ling pathway is the C-repeat binding factor/DRE-binding factor (CBF/DREB)
transcriptional regulatory cascade. Abscisic acid (ABA) is an important stress
hormone in plants that has been demonstrated to be involved in the cold stress
response through regulation of a set of specific stress-responsive genes. The cur-
rent consensus is that both ABA-dependent and ABA-independent pathways are
involved in plant responses to cold stress. This chapter summarises recent progress
made in our understanding of cold signalling and the role of ABA in cold stress,
and we also address cross talk between ABA and several classical phytohormones
that integrate with cold signalling.

Keywords Cold signalling · ABA regulation · Plant responses · Cross talk

17.1 Introduction

As sessile organisms, plants suffer from a variety of abiotic environmental
stresses, including low temperature, which can limit plant growth and the geo-
graphic distribution of a plant species, potentially impacting the reproduction
of economically important crops. To adapt to adverse environments, plants have