Investigating the crosstalk between NAD and ABA to modulate drought

Water scarcity in agriculture is worsening, leading to plant drought stress with direct impacts on physiology and productivity. Abscisic acid (ABA), a key plant stress hormone, plays a central role in drought response pathways. Recent research has revealed that nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD), a metabolic cofactor, is also involved in drought stress. Plants impaired in NAD metabolism display differential drought responses depending on ^NAD+ content with a direct correlation with ABA levels and signaling. However, the mechanisms underlying the NAD-ABA interaction and its validation as essential for plant responses to drought remain to be explored. The project explores the connection between plant metabolism and hormone signaling, with a focus on its consequences in drought responses. Through a combination of genetics, physiology, and metabolic approaches, we aim to gain fresh insights into the regulation of the interaction between the metabolic cofactor NAD and the plant stress hormone ABA.