Waterlogging represents one of the most destructive abiotic stresses, preventing global crop production, including tobacco (Nicotiana spp.), which experiences yield reductions reaching 83% under extended flooding conditions. This systematic review aimed to determine the tobacco-specific synthesis that combines metabolomic data from different genotypes with an assessment of proposed metabolic markers and identification of important research areas that require addressing in future investigations. This systematic review synthesizes findings from 18 peer-reviewed articles, which researchers selected from 571 records that the Scopus and Web of Science databases identified during the period from 2018 to 2024. The compiled evidence shows how waterlogging triggers tobacco plants to make controlled metabolic changes, affecting their antioxidant defense systems, anaerobic energy production, nitrogen-containing compound synthesis, and cellular communication pathways. Tolerant genotypes consistently exhibited enhanced antioxidant and fermentation enzyme activities and greater energy reserve retention than susceptible genotypes. Identifying enzymatic activities, energy-related metabolites, and Ca²⁺ ions was recurrent as candidate metabolic indicators.
Tobacco (Nicotiana spp.), waterlogging, inundation stress, plant defense systems, metabolite profile, antioxidant enzymes, metabolic indicators
According to the literature review, tolerant tobacco (Nicotiana spp.) genotypes maintained elevated levels of antioxidant and fermentation enzymes, higher energy reserves and ATP levels, and increased Ca²⁺ ion concentrations. These collectively serve as promising metabolic indicators for developing waterlogging-tolerant cultivars through breeding programs.