Talking Plants: Communication and Signaling via Volatiles

Abstract

There is an urgent need for new sustainable solutions to support plants in facing current environmental challenges. In particular, strengthening of productivity and food security needs sustainable exploitation of natural resources and metabolites. In this review, we fetch the attention to the agronomic potential of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emitted from plants, as a natural and eco-friendly solution to defend from stresses and to enhance crop production. Plants defense by emitting volatile organic compounds communicate with herbivore-attacked neighbors to activate defenses before being attacked. Many volatile compounds especially, transcriptome and signal cascade analyses of VOC-exposed plants indicates that plants snoop to prime direct and indirect defenses and to hone competitive abili ties. A diversity of emission responses have been observed from stressed plants. Although, the similarities have been seen in bearing environmental stress, it is also established fact that an emission of VOCs can be induced at any time from leaves of all plant species following abiotic and abiotic stress.The present challenges regarding changing environment which may hamper the use of VOCs in open field are analyzed by several scientist and solutions for a better exploitation of VOCs in future sustainable agriculture are envisioned.

Keywords: Biotic and Abiotic stress, Plant defense, , Talking plants, VOCs, Signaling,