Molecular insights of strigolactone biosynthesis, signalling pathways, regulatory roles, and hormonal crosstalks in plant systems

Abstract

• Plant synthesized hormones are essential to counteract stress conditions. • Strigolactones (SLs), a novel phytohormones, regulate plant development and interactions. • SLs crosstalk with other phytohormones is vital for plant health. • SLs fights both biotic and abiotic stress by increasing tolerance level in plants. Plants respond to a range of abiotic stimuli in nature involving anatomical, cellular, morphological, and physiological changes. The adaptability of plants to acclimatize to different environments is greatly influenced by phytohormones, which mediate growth, development and nutrient partitioning. These signal molecules are biosynthesized by plant itself and are often known as plant growth regulators. Strigolactones (SLs) are a unique class of phytohormones that have an ecological role in overcoming multiple stress circumstances. SLs are originally found in the germinating seeds of parasitic weeds, biosynthesized from precursor carotenoids and perform widespread physiological functions in bud outgrowth, shoot branching, nodulation, and photomorphogenesis. SLs correspondingly persuade arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi's hyphal branching in germinating spores. Lately, SLs have been drawn to attention as of their role in molecular and physiological adaptations in response to abiotic stresses. The SLs demonstrate crosstalk with other phytohormones and function in mitigating stress conditions through diverse molecular pathways. The present review addresses comprehensive information about the molecular signaling, biosynthesis, and importance of SLs in providing resilience towards stress conditions in diverse plants.