Flavonoids and Derived Anthocyanin Pigments in Plants-Structure, Distribution, Function, and Methods for Quantification and Characterization

Nan Jiang; Erich Grotewold

doi:10.1101/pdb.top108516

Flavonoids and Derived Anthocyanin Pigments in Plants-Structure, Distribution, Function, and Methods for Quantification and Characterization

Cold Spring Harb Protoc. 2024 Aug 26. doi: 10.1101/pdb.top108516. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Nan Jiang^{1

2}, Erich Grotewold³

Affiliations

¹ Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan 48824, USA.
² Present address: Department of Molecular Biosciences and Bioengineering, University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, Honolulu, Hawai'i 96822, USA.
³ Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan 48824, USA grotewol@msu.edu.

PMID: 39187304
DOI: 10.1101/pdb.top108516

Abstract

Flavonoids represent a large class of phenolic specialized metabolites and play crucial roles in plant-environment interactions, including responses to biotic and abiotic factors. While the core flavonoid biosynthesis pathway is well known in several plant species, enzymes involved in modifying core flavonoid structures, furnishing them with distinct biological activities, continue to be identified. Anthocyanins, a specific type of flavonoid pigment, serve various functions, including attracting pollinators and seed-dispersing organisms when accumulated in flowers and seeds. Anthocyanins also accumulate in vegetative tissues of many plants, especially under unfavorable conditions. In this review, we present an overview of the diverse structures, various distributions, and multiple functions of flavonoids in plants.