Plant NAC transcription factors responsive to abiotic stresses

Plants are subjected to a wide variety of abiotic and biotic stresses, which have been responsible for huge yield losses worldwide. Among abiotic stresses, drought, high salinity and extremes of temperature comprise some of the major factors reducing the agricultural production. On the other hand, plants have evolved several mechanisms of response and adaptation to adverse conditions. In order to overcome abiotic stress conditions, insights about physiological components that contribute to endogenous defense mechanisms of plants are extremely relevant. Genes coding for NAC transcription factors have been identified from various plant species. NAC proteins are related to several roles at cellular level in improvement of plants against abiotic stresses. This review aims to summarize current knowledge about the interaction of NAC proteins with cis-acting regulatory elements that function in abiotic stress-responsive gene expression, as well as the regulation of these proteins by plant hormones. Also, we present recent progress revealing the importance of differential expression of theses transcriptional regulators in tolerance against abiotic stresses in genetically transformed plants.