Unravelling diverse roles of strigolactones in stimulating plant growth and alleviating various stress conditions: A review

Abstract

Strigolactones (SLs) are carotenoid derived root exudates, recently classified as phytohormones, play important role in plant growth and development via complex signalling pathways, involving other phytohormones too. Based on relevant literature, this review evinces on role of SLs in stimulating the hyphal branching of AM fungi and various other plant development stages like seed germination, shoot branching, tillering, nodulation, root architecture, and highlights various researches carried out to support the role of SLs in regulating the plant growth under nutrient deficient conditions, drought and salt stress, ROS, temperature variations and, to some extent, biotic stresses for future agriculture. Versatile nature of SLs un-wraps various possibilities for their enactment in future agriculture, however, a more comprehensive knowledge on signalling and regulation mechanisms is required to exploit the full potential.