Oxidative stress from environmental sources and developmental transitions such as seed maturation involves the formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in plant cells. The modified oxidereduction changes that follow are central events in cellular responses. Plant peroxidases are involved in numerous cellular processes in plant development and in response to stress. In maize, eight peroxidases of different classes have been identified, four of which have been characterized linked to the plasma membrane in the roots of Zea mays L. In teosinte there is very little information about the mechanisms of response to oxidative stress; in this field, the most recent work relates the concentrations of peroxidases in seedlings subjected to saline stress, thermal stress and stress by infection with a plant pathogen, with the possible role that these enzymes can have in these conditions and in a fairly early period of development of the plant. The high synthesis of peroxidases at high temperatures and stress with NaCl could be interpreted as an indicator of resistance in teosinte to hot environments and certain types of soils with certain salt concentrations. Current and future climate and environmental changes force us to do research on the mechanisms of resistance of plants to adverse factors and, in this sense, the present revision aims to motivate fellow researchers to do work in that area.
