PERTANIKA JOURNAL OF TROPICAL AGRICULTURAL SCIENCE

Plants manage water stress conditions through a variety of signalling networks, which maintain physiological balances of the plants. The phytohormone, abscisic acid (ABA), regulates growth and development of plants by acting on different physiological features of plants. Various stress factors including drought result in raising the endogenous ABA concentration in plant cells. Abscisic acid modifies gene function and its transformation in plants when plants are experiencing stress conditions. Molecular mechanisms show signalling functions of ABA in plants. Several researchers have demonstrated the different roles of ABA in plants such as regulation of stomatal aperture, production of secondary metabolites and signalling cross-link with other molecules. Researchers also show significant interest in and place importance on the signalling regulation of ABA on the growth and physiology of plants. Therefore, this review highlights the signalling pathway of ABA with or without other molecules to restrain growth and physiological parameters of plants under climate change conditions.