Metabolomics and metabolic profiling: Investigation of dynamic plant-environment interactions at the functional level

Sessile plants routinely face challenges associated with environmental extremes or neighbouring competitors, and have therefore developed mechanisms that allow them to withstand constant exposure to these diverse abiotic and biotic stressors. In some cases, the response to plant stress can be manifested on demand by the plant (so-called inducible responses), while other responses are expressed constitutively and are available at all times to counter the stressor. Thus, it can be said that environment shapes a plant’s physiology and, in turn, also impacts the functioning of ecosystems. Interactions between plants, their competitors, and the environment are always dynamic and as a result often difficult to characterize. It is therefore not surprising that recent studies of such complex interactions have utilised a multitude of advanced techniques for experimentation, and have eventually led to an enhanced understanding of the physiological basis for these interactions