Plants grow in constantly changing environments, including highly variable light intensities. Sunlight provides the energy that drives photosynthesis and is thus of the utmost importance for plant growth and the generation of oxygen, which the majority of life on Earth depends on. However, exposure to either insufficient or excess levels of light can have detrimental effects and cause light stress. Whereas exposure to insufficient light limits photosynthetic activity, resulting in ‘energy starvation’, exposure to excess light can damage the photosynthetic apparatus. Furthermore, strong sunlight is associated with high levels of potentially damaging UV-B radiation. Different classes of photoreceptors play important roles in coping with the negative aspects of sunlight, for which specific mechanisms are emerging that are reviewed here.

植物在不断变化的环境中生长，包括高度可变的光照强度。阳光提供了驱动光合作用的能量，因此对于植物的生长和氧气的产生至关重要，而这是地球上大多数生命所依赖的。然而，暴露于不足或过量的光中会产生有害影响并引起光应力。暴露于不足的光会限制光合作用，导致“能量饥饿”，而暴露于过量的光会损坏光合作用。此外，强烈的阳光与高水平的潜在破坏性UV-B辐射有关。不同种类的感光体在应对阳光的负面影响方面起着重要的作用，针对这些负面影响的具体机制在此进行了综述。