Integrated Strategies for Enhancing Drought Stress Tolerance in Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)

Bread wheat (Triticum aestivum; 2n = 6x = 42; AABBDD) is a key component of global food security. Nevertheless, it faces significant challenges from abiotic stresses, particularly heat and drought. Climate change is projected to increase the frequency of drought on agricultural land, further threatening wheat yields and intensifying food insecurity. Drought stress, caused by limited water availability, elevated soil salinity, and extreme temperatures, disrupts key developmental stages in wheat, such as tillering, flowering, and grain filling, resulting in substantial yield reductions. Given that drought tolerance is a complex, polygenic trait, a comprehensive approach that integrates advanced breeding with omics technologies is required. Approaches such as genome-wide association studies (GWAS), transcriptomics, and genome engineering enable the identification of genetic determinants underlying drought resilience in Triticum species. Investigating the broad genetic diversity present in wild wheat relatives facilitates the discovery of novel drought-resistance genes. Introgression of these genes into modern bread wheat can improve productivity and stability under increasingly arid conditions. The combination of conventional breeding with omics-based strategies is critical for developing drought-resilient wheat varieties, thereby enhancing global food security and meeting the challenges of contemporary agriculture.