New developments in understanding cotton's physiological and molecular responses to salt stress

Soil salinity is a growing global concern due to its impact on plant development, agricultural production, and ecosystem stability. Understanding the salt tolerance mechanisms in cotton plants is essential for the development of methods to increase agricultural yields in salinized conditions. This comprehensive review explores the molecular and physiological responses of cotton to salt stress. Investigation on the adverse effects of salinity stress on cotton, such as photosynthetic process malfunction, ion imbalance and membrane peroxidation. The review details the critical physiological mechanisms cotton employs to mitigate salt stress effects, such as osmotic adjustment and reactive oxygen species scavenging. Additionally, we discussed the main signaling pathways activated in response to salt stress, which include the hypersensitive response protein kinase, calcium-dependent protein kinase, and mitogen-activated protein kinase pathways. The review discussed the molecular mechanism involved in salt tolerance, including gene expression changes, transcriptional regulation, epigenetic modulation, and genome editing techniques that play key roles in salt tolerance. The integrating findings from genetic, biochemical, and physiological studies provide a holistic understanding of the regulatory networks governing salt tolerance in cotton. These achievements highlight practical approaches for enhancing salt tolerance in cotton genotypes to improve productivity in saline conditions.