Studies of the resistance of agricultural plants to
water deficiency are of great importance for the understanding
of the mechanism of disrupting effects of
stress. Such studies are also necessary for developing
scientifically well-grounded methods for restoring the
operation of the photosynthetic apparatus and increasing
its stability (which in turn increase the harvest.
However, alterations of the photosynthetic apparatus
(and structural and functional characteristics of chloroplasts
in particular), taking place under the conditions
of water deficiency, are not as well studied as those
occurring under the effect of other stress types (e.g.,
decreased or increased temperatures, deficiency or
excess of nitrogen or other nutritive minerals, and
amount and quality of light).