Yu Oliver, Jez Joseph M
Donald Danforth Plant Science Center, 975 North Warson Road, St Louis, MO 63132, USA.
Plant J. 2008 May;54(4):750-62. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-313X.2008.03436.x.
Plants produce large amounts of phenylpropanoids, both in terms of molecular diversity and absolute quantity of these compounds. The phenylpropanoids, and the related plant polyketides, have multiple biological functions. They serve to attract pollinators, support secondary cell-wall growth, provide protection against various plant diseases, and interact with beneficial soil microbes. Their basic chemical properties also make them useful in the biofuel and biomaterial industries. Phenylpropanoid metabolism begins with the amino acid phenylalanine, which feeds into various biosynthetic pathways that generate a wide range of structurally related polyphenolic compounds. This review focuses on four sub-groups of these polyphenolic compounds - polyketides, stilbenes, isoflavones and catechins. We discuss the biosynthesis of these molecules, their physiological role in plants, and their striking pharmacological and physiological effects on humans. This review also highlights metabolic engineering efforts aimed at increasing or decreasing the amounts of each class of compound in various model plants and crops.
植物会产生大量的苯丙烷类化合物，无论是从这些化合物的分子多样性还是绝对数量来看。苯丙烷类化合物以及相关的植物聚酮化合物具有多种生物学功能。它们用于吸引传粉者、支持次生细胞壁生长、提供对各种植物病害的保护以及与有益土壤微生物相互作用。它们的基本化学性质也使它们在生物燃料和生物材料行业中有用。苯丙烷类代谢始于氨基酸苯丙氨酸，它进入各种生物合成途径，产生一系列结构相关的多酚化合物。本综述重点关注这些多酚化合物的四个亚组——聚酮化合物、芪类化合物、异黄酮和儿茶素。我们讨论了这些分子的生物合成、它们在植物中的生理作用以及它们对人类显著的药理和生理作用。本综述还强调了旨在增加或减少各种模式植物和作物中各类化合物含量的代谢工程研究。
