Recent advances on the regulation of anthocyanin synthesis in reproductive organs

Anthocyanins represent the major red, purple, violet and blue pigments in many flowers and fruits. They attract pollinators and seed dispersers and defend plants against abiotic and biotic stresses. Anthocyanins are produced by a specific branch of the flavonoid pathway, which is differently regulat...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Plant science (Limerick) 2011-09, Vol.181 (3), p.219-229
Main Authors: Petroni, Katia, Tonelli, Chiara
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
anthocyanins
Anthocyanins - biosynthesis
Anthocyanins - genetics
Arabidopsis
Arabidopsis - genetics
Arabidopsis - metabolism
bHLH
Biological and medical sciences
biosynthesis
corn
Crops, Agricultural - genetics
Crops, Agricultural - metabolism
flowers
fruits
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Gene Expression Regulation, Plant
genes
Genes, Plant
MYB
Plants - genetics
Plants - metabolism
Plants, Genetically Modified - genetics
Plants, Genetically Modified - metabolism
pollinators
proteins
Transcription factors
Transcription, Genetic
WD40
Zea mays - genetics
Zea mays - metabolism
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Anthocyanins represent the major red, purple, violet and blue pigments in many flowers and fruits. They attract pollinators and seed dispersers and defend plants against abiotic and biotic stresses. Anthocyanins are produced by a specific branch of the flavonoid pathway, which is differently regulated in monocot and dicot species. In the monocot maize, the anthocyanin biosynthesis genes are activated as a single unit by a ternary complex of MYB-bHLH-WD40 transcription factors (MBW complex). In the dicot Arabidopsis, anthocyanin biosynthesis genes can be divided in two subgroups: early biosynthesis genes (EBGs) are activated by co-activator independent R2R3-MYB transcription factors, whereas late biosynthesis genes (LBGs) require an MBW complex. In addition to this, a complex regulatory network of positive and negative feedback mechanisms controlling anthocyanin synthesis in Arabidopsis has been described. Recent studies have broadened our understanding of the regulation of anthocyanin synthesis in flowers and fruits, indicating that a regulatory system based on the cooperation of MYB, bHLH and WD40 proteins that control floral and fruit pigmentation is common to many dicot species.
ISSN:0168-9452
1873-2259
DOI:10.1016/j.plantsci.2011.05.009