Modulation of Phototropin Signalosome with Artificial Illumination Holds Great Potential in the Development of Climate-Smart Crops

Changes in environmental conditions like temperature and light critically influence crop production. To deal with these changes, plants possess various photoreceptors such as Phototropin (PHOT), Phytochrome (PHY), Cryptochrome (CRY), and UVR8 that work synergistically as sen-sor and stress sensing receptors to different external cues. PHOTs are capable of regulating several functions like growth and development, chloroplast relocation, thermomorphogenesis, metabolite accumulation, stomatal opening, and phototropism in plants. PHOT plays a pivotal role in overcom-ing the damage caused by excess light and other environmental stresses (heat, cold, and salinity) and biotic stress. The crosstalk between photoreceptors and phytohormones contributes to plant growth, seed germination, photo-protection, flowering, phototropism, and stomatal opening. Molecular genetic studies using gene targeting and synthetic biology approaches have revealed the potential role of different photoreceptor genes in the manipulation of various beneficial agronomic traits. Overexpression of PHOT2 in Fragaria ananassa leads to the increase in anthocyanin con -tent in its leaves and fruits. Artificial illumination with blue light alone and in combination with red light influence the growth, yield, and secondary metabolite production in many plants, while in algal species, it affects growth, chlorophyll content, lipid production and also increases its bioreme-diation efficiency. Artificial illumination alters the morphological, developmental, and physiologi-cal characteristics of agronomic crops and algal species. This review focuses on PHOT modulated signalosome and artificial illumination-based photo-biotechnological approaches for the develop-ment of climate-smart crops.

Automated summary

Plants utilize photoreceptors to respond to environmental changes, regulate growth, and cope with stress; the interaction between photoreceptors and plant hormones influences plant growth and reproduction; photo-biotechnological approaches based on artificial illumination impact the growth, yield, secondary metabolite production, and other characteristics of crops and algae.