AUTHOR=Zulfiqar Faisal , Nafees Muhammad , Chen Jianjun , Darras Anastasios , Ferrante Antonio , Hancock John T. , Ashraf Muhammad , Zaid Abbu , Latif Nadeem , Corpas Francisco J. , Altaf Muhammad Ahsan , Siddique Kadambot H. M. 

TITLE=Chemical priming enhances plant tolerance to salt stress

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Plant Science

VOLUME=13

YEAR=2022

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/plant-science/articles/10.3389/fpls.2022.946922

DOI=10.3389/fpls.2022.946922

ISSN=1664-462X

ABSTRACT=<p>Salt stress severely limits the productivity of crop plants worldwide and its detrimental effects are aggravated by climate change. Due to a significant world population growth, agriculture has expanded to marginal and salinized regions, which usually render low crop yield. In this context, finding methods and strategies to improve plant tolerance against salt stress is of utmost importance to fulfill food security challenges under the scenario of the ever-increasing human population. Plant priming, at different stages of plant development, such as seed or seedling, has gained significant attention for its marked implication in crop salt-stress management. It is a promising field relying on the applications of specific chemical agents which could effectively improve plant salt-stress tolerance. Currently, a variety of chemicals, both inorganic and organic, which can efficiently promote plant growth and crop yield are available in the market. This review summarizes our current knowledge of the promising roles of diverse molecules/compounds, such as hydrogen sulfide (H<sub>2</sub>S), molecular hydrogen, nitric oxide (NO), hydrogen peroxide (H<sub>2</sub>O<sub>2</sub>), melatonin, chitosan, silicon, ascorbic acid (AsA), tocopherols, and trehalose (Tre) as potential primers that enhance the salinity tolerance of crop plants.</p>