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Angiosperms are able to respond rapidly to the first sign of dry conditions, a decrease in air humidity, more accurately described as an increase in the vapor pressure deficit between the leaf and the atmosphere (VPD), by abscisic acid (ABA)-mediated stomatal closure. The genes underlying this response offer valuable candidates for targeted selection of crop varieties with improved drought tolerance, a critical goal for current plant breeding programs, to maximize crop production in drier and increasingly marginalized environments, and meet the demands of a growing population in the face of a changing climate. Here, we review current understanding of the genetic mechanisms underpinning ABA-mediated stomatal closure, a key means for conserving water under dry conditions, examine how these mechanisms evolved, and discuss what remains to be investigated.

Item Type:	Refereed Article
Keywords:	stomata, humidity, vapor pressure deficit (VPD), abscisic acid (ABA), 9-cis-epoxycarotenoid dioxygenase (NCED), water deficit stress, evolution, sensing water status
Research Division:	Biological Sciences
Research Group:	Evolutionary biology
Research Field:	Biological adaptation
Objective Division:	Environmental Policy, Climate Change and Natural Hazards
Objective Group:	Adaptation to climate change
Objective Field:	Climate change adaptation measures (excl. ecosystem)
UTAS Author:	Sussmilch, F (Dr Frances Sussmilch)
UTAS Author:	McAdam, SAM (Dr Scott McAdam)
ID Code:	123711
Year Published:	2017
Web of Science® Times Cited:	18
Deposited By:	Tasmanian Institute of Agriculture
Deposited On:	2018-01-20
Last Modified:	2018-12-13
Downloads:	111 View Download Statistics