Abstract
Proanthocyanidins (PAs) form the basis for bloat-safety in a number of forage legumes. An attractive strategy for increasing the level of PAs in the foliage of forage legumes, including white clover (Trifolium repens) and alfalfa (Medicago sativa), involves metabolic reprogramming to divert intermediates from the pre-existing anthocyanin (ANT) pathway to PA biosynthesis. The ANT and PA pathways show remarkable similarities at the molecular and biochemical levels. However, modification of flavonoid biosynthesis to produce an agronomically desirable level of PA in foliage (2–4% of dry weight) is still a formidable task. To meet this challenge, a deeper understanding of the spatial patterns of ANT and PA accumulation in different tissues and cells of white clover and changes associated with development and exposure of plants to stress is required. Improved knowledge of PA and ANT biosynthesis should enhance the ability to reprogram the flavonoid pathway to develop bloat-safe white clover plants with an elevated level of PA in the foliage.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Aerts RJ, Barry TN, McNabb WC (1999) Polyphenols and agriculture: beneficial effects of proanthocyanidins in forages. Agric Ecosyst Environ 75: 1–12
Bogs J, Jaffe FW, Takos AM, Walker AR, Robinson SP (2007) The grapevine transcription factor VvMYBPA1. regulates proanthocyanidin synthesis during fruit development Plant Physiol 143: 1347–1361
Dixon RA, Steele CL (1999) Flavonoids and isoflavonoids – a gold mine for metabolic engineering. Trends Plant Sci 4: 394–400
Dixon RA, Sumner LW (2003) Legume natural products: understanding and manipulating complex pathways for human and animal health. Plant Physiol 131: 878–885
Foo LY, Lu Y, Molan AL, Woodfield DR, McNabb WC (2000) The phenols and prodelphinidins of white clover flowers. Phytochemistry 54: 539–548
Forster JW, Spangenberg G (1999) Forage and turf grass biotechnology: principles, methods and prospects. In: Setlow JK (ed) Genetic Engineering: Principles and Methods, Vol 21, Kluwer/Plenum, New York, pp 191–237
Grotewold E (2005) Plant metabolic diversity: a regulatory perspective. Trends Plant Sci 10: 57–62
Grotewold E (2006) The genetics and biochemistry of floral pigments. Annu Rev Plant Biol 57: 761–780
Paolocci, FRobbins, MPMadeo, LArcioni, SMartens, SDamiani F(2007)Ectopic expression of a basic helix-loop-helix gene transactivates parallel pathways of proanthocyanidin biosynthesis. structure, expression analysis, and genetic control of leucoanthocyanidin 4-reductase and anthocyanidin reductase genes in Lotus corniculatus. Plant Physiol 143: 504–516
Ubi B, Honda C, Bessho H, Kondo S, Wada M, Kobayashi S, Moriguchi T (2006) Expression analysis of anthocyanin biosynthetic genes in apple skin: effect of UV-B and temperature, Plant Sci 170: 571–578
Wang Y, Douglas GB, Waghorn GC, Barry TN, Foote AG, Purchas RW (1996) Effect of condensed tannins upon the performance of lambs grazing Lotus corniculatus. and lucerne (Medicago sativa) J Agric Sci 126: 87–980
Winkel-Shirley B (2002) Biosynthesis of flavonoids and effects of stress. Curr Opin Plant Biol 5: 218–223
Xie DY, Dixon RA (2005) Proanthocyanidin biosynthesis – still more questions than answers? Phytochemistry 66: 2127–2144
Xie DY, Sharma SB, Paiva NL, Ferreira D, Dixon RA (2003) Role of anthocyanidin reductase, encoded by BANYULS. in plant flavonoid biosynthesis Science 299: 396–939
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2009 Springer Science + Business Media, LLC
About this paper
Cite this paper
Mouradov, A., Panter, S., Abeynayake, S., Chapman, R., Webster, T., Spangenberg, G. (2009). Molecular Dissection of Proanthocyanidin and Anthocyanin Bosynthesis in White Clover (Trifolium repens). In: Molecular Breeding of Forage and Turf. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-79144-9_12
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-79144-9_12
Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY
Print ISBN: 978-0-387-79143-2
Online ISBN: 978-0-387-79144-9
eBook Packages: Biomedical and Life SciencesBiomedical and Life Sciences (R0)