transcription factors in plant defense: regulatory cascades and functional diversity.

Basic leucine zipper transcription factors (TFs), also known as ABRE-BINDING PROTEINs/ABRE BINDING FACTORs (), and ABA INSENSITIVE 5 (), show a great potential for the regulation of gene expressions in different crops under unfavorable conditions. These factors are involved in phytohormone signaling pathways, developmental metabolism, and growth regulation under environmental stresses. functions alongside to regulate gene expression, with their promoter regions composed of the receptors , kinases (sucrose non-fermenting-1-related protein kinase 2) and phosphatases (PROTEIN PHOSPHATASE 2 C). These TFs participate in signaling pathways that regulate key genes and control numerous morphological, physiological, biochemical, and molecular processes under stressful environments. In this review, we studied TFs, the phytohormone signaling pathways and their crosstalk, which play critical roles in regulating responses to abiotic stresses. The key TFs discussed in this work regulate various metabolic pathways and are promising candidates for the development of stress-resilient crops CRISPR/CRISPR-associated protein technology to address threats to food security and sustainability in agriculture.