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reactive-oxygen-species

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Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are highly reactive molecules derived from oxygen—including superoxide, hydrogen peroxide, and hydroxyl radicals—that are continuously produced as byproducts of plant metabolism, particularly during photosynthesis and respiration. In plant biology, ROS serve a dual role: at low levels they act as essential signaling molecules that regulate growth, development, and responses to environmental stresses such as drought, pathogen attack, and UV exposure, while in excess they can cause oxidative damage to proteins, lipids, and DNA. Understanding how plants produce, sense, and scavenge ROS is central to research on stress tolerance, cell death, and crop resilience.

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