A Familiar Ring to It: Biosynthesis of Plant Benzoic Acids

• Published in: Molecular plant Vol. 8; no. 1; pp. 83 - 97
• Main Authors: Widhalm, Joshua R., Dudareva, Natalia
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Elsevier Inc 05.01.2015; Elsevier
• Subjects: attractants; Benzoates - metabolism; benzoic acids; biosynthesis; enzymes; genes; metabolic network; Metabolic Networks and Pathways; metabolites; nutritive value; phenylpropanoids; plant hormones; Plants - metabolism; pollinators; Propanols - metabolism; salicylic acid; Salicylic Acid - metabolism; transporters; volatiles; salicylic acid; benzoic acids; phenylpropanoids; biosynthesis; metabolic network; volatiles
• ISSN: 1674-2052; 1752-9867; 1752-9867
• DOI: 10.1016/j.molp.2014.12.001

Plant benzoic acids (BAs) are building blocks or important structural elements for numerous primary and specialized metabolites, including plant hormones, cofactors, defense compounds, and attractants for pollinators and seed dispersers. Many natural products derived from plant BAs or containing benzoyl/benzyl moieties are also of medicinal or nutritional value to humans. Biosynthesis of BAs in plants is a network involving parallel and intersecting pathways spread across multiple subcellular compartments. In this review, a current overview on the metabolism of plant BAs is presented with a focus on the recent progress made on isolation and functional characterization of genes encoding biosynthetic enzymes and intracellular transporters. In addition, approaches for deciphering the complex interactions between pathways of the BAs network are discussed. Plant benzoic acids are aromatic C6–C1 compounds that serve as precursors for a multitude of important products playing cardinal roles in plant fitness. This review highlights the recent progress made in elucidating the pathways comprising the plant benzoic acids biosynthetic network.