Mechanisms of drought tolerance in legumes: physiological impacts, adaptive responses, and phenotyping strategies

Drought is recognized as the primary abiotic stress limiting global crop productivity and poses a significant threat to food security. Consequently, the genetic improvement of drought tolerance has become a priority for modern plant breeding. Developing resilient cultivars requires a fundamental understanding of the physiological, biochemical, and molecular mechanisms that plants employ to counteract water deficits. This review provides a comprehensive analysis of drought-induced effects across various developmental stages in legumes, detailing the signaling networks that facilitate stress perception and response. Furthermore, we evaluate the experimental parameters and methodologies frequently used to assess drought tolerance, weighing their respective advantages and limitations. Finally, we analyze the revolutionary role that high-throughput phenotyping could play in stress assessment and precision breeding.