Role of DNA Methylation in Plant Growth Regulation

An adverse environmental condition or pathogen infection creates stress for plants and poses significant challenges, affecting their development, growth and productivity. It may disrupt normal physiological processes and hamper plant survival. Epigenetic alterations are reversible and initiate quick response mechanisms that allow plants to fight against environmental stress and pathogen attack. Various epigenetic mechanisms, such as cytosine methylation, histone modifications and small RNA accumulation, are key markers for regulating growth, development and responses to biotic and abiotic stimuli. In this chapter, such mechanisms and the importance of epigenetics in plant growth regulation are overviewed.