Author:

Abstract

The current rate of climate change predicts that plants will become subject to increasing extremes of environmental stress. Rapid population increase in developing countries also demand higher yield from crop production, often from sub-optimal agricultural areas. Genetic engineering can help to meet these needs through the development of crops with greater stress tolerance. Mediator is transcriptional co-activators which convey DNA bound transcriptional regulators and enhancers to the general RNA polymerase II transcription machinery and mediator genes are recently identified in plants. So far it has been showed that their great involvement in regulation of plant stress tolerance by controlling transcription of stress genes. Therefore, Mediator genes will be a good source in future molecular biology researches on manipulation of crop plants with multiple stress tolerance.

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.4038/jepsl.v1i1.5141

Journal of Environmental Professionals Sri Lanka Vol.1(1) 2012 43-56

Keywords: Mediator genes, Environmental stress, Stress tolerance