ABSTRACT
In several tropical—as well as subtropical—countries, a promising biofuel cash crop, sugarcane (different species of Saccharum) is the primary source of sugar and bioethanol. Anthropogenic activities have had a significant impact on climate, making our planet vulnerable to abiotic stresses. Plants have evolved different physiological, biochemical, and molecular mechanisms to sustain stress. Sugarcane plants exposed to different abiotic stresses like drought (the most prevalent), temperature, salinity, and nutrient deficiency display altered chemical characteristics and biosynthesis of sugar along with reduced growth, development, and yield. Sugarcane omics studies have shown differential regulation of several stress-associated genes. One of the main goals of investigators striving to improve sugarcane production is to develop abiotic stress-resistant cultivars. This chapter mainly focuses on the abiotic stress responses of different sugarcane species. Also discussed are the important genes that confer enhanced abiotic stress tolerance, miRNAs that are up/down-regulated in response to diverse abiotic stress conditions, and different sugarcane cultivars genetically engineered for abiotic stress resistance. The information discussed here can be used as an important resource for designing tolerant sugarcane varieties using innovative biotechnological techniques.
