Plants employ diversified mechanisms to adapt to changing environments. The response of plants to stress involves the accumulation of stress-related proteins or the expression of stress-associated genes that encode proteins. There are numerous genes that are either downregulated or upregulated in response to stress. Stress induces two groups of stress-responsive genes: one group encodes proteins directly engaged in drought stress tolerance, while the other encodes proteins such as transcription factors required for stress signaling. Stress alters the expression of numerous genes responsible for encoding transcription factors, transporter proteins, water channels, heat shock proteins, and iron transporters. The majority of terrestrial plants are associated with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF). AMF has been shown in studies to alter the gene expression of host plants. This chapter focuses on a deeper understanding of the role of AMF in the genetic regulation of host plants.
