Participation of Nitric Oxide in the Regulation of Plants' Development and Their Resistance to Water Deficit

Nitric oxide is a common signaling molecule involved in the modulation of metabolic activity during normal growth and development of plants and during the formation of their resistance to environmental stress factors. The review presents key information reflecting the current state of the problem of the regulatory role of NO in plants. Brief information is given about the physicochemical properties of NO, methods for its study, biosynthesis pathways, and functional activity at different stages of plant development (germination, vegetative growth, flowering, root formation, symbiosis, mineral nutrition). In addition, the manifestation of the protective effects of NO under conditions of moisture deficiency is described since the violation of the water regime and dehydration of plants is observed under the influence of various abiotic stress factors, including drought, salinity, and hypo- and hyperthermia. Particular attention is paid to the molecular mechanisms of NO-dependent signaling, which are realized in plants at the genomic, proteomic, and postproteomic levels during multiple nitration reactions. Understanding the mechanisms of the regulatory action of NO in normal conditions and under stress is of great theoretical and applied importance because of the need for a fundamental substantiation of the possibility of practical application of NO in order to increase the resistance and productivity of cultivated plants.