Ethylene Signaling in Regulating Plant Growth, Development, and Stress Responses

Ethylene is a gaseous plant hormone that plays a crucial role in coordinating various physiological processes in plants. It acts as a key mediator, integrating both endogenous developmental cues and external environmental signals to regulate a wide range of functions, including growth, fruit ripening, leaf abscission, and responses to stress. The signaling pathway is initiated when ethylene binds to its receptor. After decades of research, the key components of ethylene signaling have been identified and characterized. Although the molecular mechanisms of the sensing of ethylene signal and its transduction have been studied extensively, a new area of research is how respiration and epigenetic modifications influence ethylene signaling and ethylene response. Here, we summarize the research progress in recent years and review the function and importance of ethylene signaling in plant growth and stress responses. In addition, we also describe the current understanding of how epigenetic modifications regulate ethylene signaling and the ethylene response. Together, our review sheds light on the new signaling mechanisms of ethylene.