Oxygen Deficiency-Induced Root-to-Shoot Communication

During anoxic condition, moving from the primary oxygen sensing organ, the root, the plant effects a re-definition of the metabolism across the whole body. The goal of a behaviour analysis approach in the study of root adaptation during anoxic stress is to understand the physiology of the whole plant, where the mechanisms involved in a single organ can influence and determine important metabolic adjustments elsewhere in order to assure plant survival. Since the perception of oxygen availability is the primary step in the plant adaptation to anoxia, the adjustment of molecular pathways for the enzyme biosynthesis in roots have shown to be determinant for an intra-plant communication. In this chapter, we review the main mechanisms adopted in roots subject to anoxia, considering different tolerance degrees and different strategies, and how these adaptations reflect on the behaviour of the entire organism.