Manipulation of light environment for optimising photoreceptor activity towards enhancing plant traits of agronomic and horticultural importance in crops

ABSTRACT

Artificial lighting systems have tremendously aided the provision of efficient energy for photosynthesis in crop plants but these are seldom fine-tuned to optimally regulate plant growth. Plants are endowed with photoreceptors that enable them to utilise light of different wavelengths as cues for growth and development. These photoreceptors initiate downstream signalling pathways that modulate gene expression which regulates growth and development in the plant. Numerous studies have described these photoreceptors as biochemical switches that can be selectively regulated to control plant growth and development. The rapid advances in our understanding of plant photo-sensory processes, have propelled efforts to extend these findings to the design of plant growth strategies aimed at enhancing plant traits of agronomic importance in crops by manipulating the light environment. Here, we provide an overview of the different known plant photoreceptors and how the quality, quantity or duration of light can affect plant traits such as yield, quality/nutrition, disease/pathogen resistance and flowering; that can enhance the agricultural and/or horticultural value of crops. The objective of the review is to highlight the potential of (and need for) transfer of information gained from laboratory experiments, for optimising photoreceptor activity towards improving specific plant traits, thereby facilitating sustainable and market-oriented crop production in agricultural and horticultural crops along with enhancement in yield and nutrition.

KEYWORDS:

• Crop yield and quality
• crop productivity
• plant photoreceptor
• light quality
• light signalling
• narrow-bandwidth light

Author contribution

EK conceptualised and directed the study; OILM, VL, RB and EK carried out the study and prepared the manuscript; EK wrote and finalised the manuscript; EK prepared the figures with inputs from VL and RB; EK and LS revised the article. All authors read and approved the manuscript for submission.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work is partly supported by Eureka Project with grant no NECBH/2019-20/139 under North East Centre for Biological Sciences and Healthcare Engineering (NECBH) Twinning Outreach Programme hosted by Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati (IITG), Guwahati, Assam funded by Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Ministry of Science and Technology, Govt. of India with number BT/COE/34/SP28408/2018 to EK and grant no. EEQ/2019/0000223 (Science and Engineering Research Board, (Department of Science and Technology, New Delhi) to EK. The funders had no role in the study design; in the collection, analyses and interpretation of data; in the writing of the article; and in the decision to submit the article for publication.