The Improvement of Maize (Zea mays L.) for Drought Stress Tolerance

Maize is one of the important cereals in the world after rice and wheat. It is grown for grain as well as fodder in tropical, sub-tropical and temperate regions of the World. The reduction of maize productivity under drought stress conditions depends on different factors such as plant development stage, drought intensity and duration of water deficit, and varietal sensitivity to drought stress. Drought stress is one of the major constraints to agriculture where limited water availability for crop irrigation causes a reduction in carbon fixation by the photosynthetic apparatus that result in net yield losses. Plant breeders desire novel and more accurate tools to fast-track breeding programs required for the increasing demands of food and fodder because farmers are facing a changing climate in which drought stress has major impacts on crop damages globally. Crop loss, because of drought stress, has a huge impact on agriculture industry and the economy. Therefore, to prevent economic loss and to make the crop plants more tolerant to drought stress, a variety of approaches such as conventional breeding and molecular/ genetic engineering are being practiced. Keywords: Genetic engineering, Conventional breeding, Molecular assisted selection, Drought and Stress DOI: 10.7176/JBAH/11-17-04 Publication date:September 30th 202