Geography, altitude, agriculture, and hypoxia

Reduced oxygen availability (hypoxia) represents a key plant abiotic stress in natural and agricultural systems, but conversely it is also an important component of normal growth and development. We review recent advances that demonstrate how genetic adaptations associated with hypoxia impact the known plant oxygen-sensing mechanism through the PLANT CYSTEINE OXIDASE N-degron pathway. Only 3 protein substrates of this pathway have been identified, and all adaptations identified to date are associated with the most important of these, the group VII ETHYLENE RESPONSE FACTOR transcription factors. We discuss how geography, altitude, and agriculture have all shaped molecular responses to hypoxia and how these responses have emerged at different taxonomic levels through the evolution of land plants. Understanding how ecological and agricultural genetic variation acts positively to enhance hypoxia tolerance will provide novel tools and concepts to improve the performance of crops in the face of increasing extreme flooding events.