Major abiotic stresses on quality parameters in grain legumes: Impacts and various strategies for improving quality traits

• Published in: Environmental and experimental botany 2024-12, Vol.228, p.105978, Article 105978
• Main Authors: Jha, Uday Chand, Priya, Manu, Naik, Yogesh Dashrath, Nayyar, Harsh, Thudi, Mahendar, Punnuri, Somashekhar M., Siddique, Kadambot H.M., Prasad, P.V. Vara
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Drought; Food security; Heat; Micronutrients; Nutritional value; Salinity
• ISSN: 0098-8472
• DOI: 10.1016/j.envexpbot.2024.105978

Abiotic stresses, such as drought, heat, salinity, waterlogging, tropospheric ozone, and heavy metals, adversely affect crop growth and yield, posing significant challenges to crop production, including grain legumes. With global climate change likely to exacerbate these stresses, legume yields are becoming increasingly vulnerable. While the detrimental effects of these stresses on crop yield are well-documented, their impact on quality traits in grain legumes is less recognized. Abiotic stresses can alter grain carbohydrates, proteins, fats/lipids, amino acids, sugar content, various micronutrients, food value, and antioxidants, significantly impairing quality traits. This review summarizes the negative impacts of various abiotic stresses on the quality parameters of different grain legumes and explores crop breeding strategies, plant physiology, genomics, and novel molecular tools to mitigate these adverse effects. [Display omitted] •Impact of abiotic stresses on grain quality traits in legumes are discussed.•Advances in genomics and next generation breeding tools could greatly enable in improving grain quality traits in legume.•Role of integrated “omics” and other breeding approaches facilitating in improving grain quality traits for ensuring nutritional security are elaborated.