Plants encounter various stresses in their natural environments and can effectively respond to only one stress at a time. Through a complex gene network, transcription factors (TFs) such as WRKY TFs regulate a diverse array of stress responses. The clarification of the structural characteristics of WRKY proteins, along with recent advancements in molecular dynamics simulations, has shed light on the formation, stability, and interactions of DNA–protein complexes. This has provided a novel viewpoint regarding the control of WRKY TFs. The investigation of superfamilies, encompassing their historical development, diversity, and evolutionary patterns, has become feasible due to the transcriptome approach’s capacity to provide extensive and comprehensive transcripts. The significance of WRKY TFs lies in their pivotal role within several signaling cascades and regulatory networks that influence plant defense responses. The present review summarizes the functional aspects of the high-volume sequence data of WRKY TFs from different species studied to date. Moreover, a comparative analysis approach was utilized to determine the functions of the identified WRKY TFs in response to both abiotic and biotic stresses, as revealed through numerous studies on different plant species. The results of this review will be pivotal in understanding evolutionary events and the significance of WRKY TFs in the context of climate change, incorporating new scientific evidence to propose an innovative viewpoint.

Saline–alkali soil seriously inhibits crop growth and yields and threatens the sustainable development of agriculture. Corn straw compost can alleviate saline–alkali stress and improve crop growth and development. In this study, we demonstrate that corn straw compost (CSC) improved soil physicochemical properties, e.g., decreased pH and electrical conductivity (EC), but increased soil nutrients, e.g., available nitrogen and phosphorus, and soluble organic carbon, as well as activities of sucrase and urease in saline–alkali soil. CSC affected the structure of water-stable aggregates (WSA) and the composition of soil microflora in saline–alkali soil. With the increase in the content of CSC, the abundances of some genera, e.g., Thermobacillus, Thermopolyspora, and Thermobispora, were significantly increased, suggesting that they play an important role in improving soil nutrient components and physicochemical properties, which subsequently improved plant growth and development. Consequently, the biomass and yields of rice grown in saline–alkali soil were greatly improved. In conclusion, CSC can improve saline–alkali soil activities and microbial communities, thus improving crop growth and yields. Our findings provide a theoretical basis for the sustainable development of modern agriculture.

Leymus chinensis, a halophytic perennial grass belonging to the Poaceae family, thrives in saline-alkali grasslands and harbors a rich repository of resistance-related genetic resources. This study focused on deciphering the stress-responsive mechanisms of L. chinensis by conducting transcriptomic sequencing under NaHCO₃ stress, which resulted in the annotation of a segment corresponding to the 51WRKY gene. The alkali-induced gene LcWRKY40 (QIG37591) was identified by phylogenetic analysis. Real-time quantitative PCR analysis was performed on L. chinensis plants subjected to PEG6000 and alkaline salt (NaHCO₃) stress, and the results indicated that the LcWRKY40 gene was upregulated in both the leaves and roots. The localization of the LcWRKY40 protein was confirmed by the use of green fluorescent protein (GFP) fusion technology in transformed rice protoplast cells. The GAL4-driven transformation of the LcWRKY40 gene in INVScI yeast cells, which exhibited enhanced tolerance upon overexpression of the LcWRKY40 gene under mannitol and alkaline salt (NaHCO₃) stress conditions. Under drought stress using mannitol, the fresh weight of Nicotiana tabacum overexpressing the LcWRKY40 gene was significantly higher than that of wild-type(WT) tobacco. Through drought and salt alkali stress, we found that overexpressed tobacco at different stages always outperformed the wild type in terms of fresh weight, SOD, MDA, and Fv/Fm. This study provides preliminary insights into the involvement of the LcWRKY40 gene in responding to drought and alkaline salt stresses, highlighting its role in enhancing plant resistance to drought and saline-alkaline conditions. These findings lay the foundation for future molecular breeding strategies aimed at improving grass resistance from different aspects.

Climatic stresses impede plant growth and development, leading to significant reductions in crop yield and biomass production. These challenges are exacerbated by global population growth and increasing desertification, which threaten global food security. Although advanced agricultural technologies, including smart irrigation systems, optimized cropping calendars, and stress-tolerant cultivars, have been developed to mitigate these stressors, their large-scale adoption remains limited due to high costs, technical complexity, and infrastructural constraints. Therefore, sustainable, eco-friendly, and cost-effective strategies are urgently required to ensure adequate crop productivity for the growing global population. At this crucial juncture, there is a pressing need to transition toward sustainable agricultural practices that strengthen plant resilience through natural and biological mechanisms. Plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) represent a promising biological approach for enhancing crop productivity by improving nutrient availability and mitigating the adverse effects of climate-induced abiotic and biotic stresses. This review uniquely integrates the biochemical, physiological, and molecular mechanisms of PGPR in plant nutrition and stress mitigation while critically analyzing contradictory field results and highlighting newly characterized strains and sustainable tools for climate-resilient agriculture.

Saline-alkali soil is a major constraint in agricultural production worldwide; environmentally sustainable amendment is being adopted. This study systematically investigated the effects of different concentrations of apple fermentation liquid (AFL). On rice growth under saline-alkali soil using a controlled greenhouse pot experiment. Rice plants were treated with four AFL dilutions (1:25, 1:50, 1:100 and 1:200, v/v), and the plant growth traits, development, physiological responses, biochemical characteristics, rhizosphere fungal community composition, and root transcriptome profiles were assessed. The results showed that: (1) AFL application significantly enhanced growth of rice, with the JS25 (1:25) treatment increasing plant height, stem and root length by 70.7%, 111.4% and 72.9% respectively, compared with the saline-alkali control. It also increased the antioxidant enzyme activities CAT (114.7%-232.2%) and SOD (52.5%-119.1%), and chlorophyll content (127.1%-189.6%), while indicating alleviation of saline-alkali stress by reducing proline accumulation (53.0%-74.9%); (2) High-throughput sequencing (ITS region) revealed that AFL treatment significantly altered the structure of rhizosphere fungal community, markedly increasing the relative abundance of genera such as Plectosphaerella , and Acremonium while changes in Fusarium abundance were interpreted cautiously due to its taxonomic diversity; (3) Transcriptome analysis showed that AFL treatment (JS100) induced large-scale gene expression reprograming in rice roots, including genes associated with ion transport, antioxidant defense, and stress signaling pathways. Because of the post-treatment soil physiochemical parameters and qRT-PCR validation were not conducted, the proposed mechanism should be considered exploratory and hypothesis generating. Overall, this study suggests that AFL treatment may enhance rice stress tolerance under saline-alkali conditions, as reflected in the observed physiochemical, fungal, and transcriptomic responses. However, due to the absence of post-treatment soil analysis and qRT-PCR validation, these findings should be considered exploratory and hypothesis-generating.