Phytomelatonin: an emerging regulator of oxidative imbalance due to abiotic stress

Drought, heat, cold, flood, salt, light, air pollution, and pesticide-induced oxidative damage have a detrimental impact on plant growth, reproduction, and survival. Thus, our research seeks to establish through a tryptophan-derivative plant molecule known as phytomelatonin, which may play a significant function in plant responses to various environmental stresses. Through the pieces of literature analysis, we reviewed the exogenous melatonin application and its influence on oxidative stress such as ROS and RNS generated in plant tissues under different abiotic stimuli. Our investigations also concern how phytomelatonin impacts the level of antioxidative proteins such as Superoxide dismutase (SOD), Catalase, and Glutathione Peroxidase (GPx) under these stimuli. After our deep investigation through the literature survey, we found that phytomelatonin acts as a powerful scavenging agent to detoxify ROS and RNS under abiotic threats. Additionally, it also significantly enhanced the level of oxidant proteins to minimize the negative impact of reactive species under these threats. In this way, phytomelatonin exhibits multiple crucial capabilities including root growth, leaf senescence, photosynthetic rate, and increased biomass. Moreover, we discussed in brief how phytomelatonin acts as an emerging regulator of oxidative imbalance between oxidative stress and antioxidative proteins induced by abiotic stresses, generated primarily in cell organelles, nuclei, plasma membrane, cytosol, and apoplast. Thus, it may be concluded that the phytomelatonin molecule might be improving the balance of these stressful conditions in plants for its better-surviving capacities under different threatful situations.