Molecular Interactions Between Flowering Time and Abiotic Stress Pathways

Plants have adapted to environmental changes and stresses over generations. The decision of transition from the vegetative to reproductive stage is critical, particularly under unfavorable conditions. Thus, plants appear to have developed mechanisms by which environmental factors or inputs are transmitted to stress response signaling pathways to confer tolerance and are simultaneously integrated into flowering regulation pathways (photoperiod, vernalization, autonomous, and gibberellic acid signaling) to propagate the next generation. In this review, we summarize how abiotic stresses influence, induce, or delay flowering time, particularly in the long-day plant Arabidopsis. Four major modes including FLOWERING LOCUS C (FLC), CONSTANS (CO), DELLA, and GIGANTEA (GI), which serve as hubs that integrate stress signals for regulating flowering time, are introduced. GI, a mediator of the photoperiod floral pathway and circadian clock, is involved in various biological processes and thus controls stress response directly through interaction with stress-responsive components and indirectly through association with circadian clock components.