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ARS Home » Pacific West Area » Parlier, California » San Joaquin Valley Agricultural Sciences Center » Crop Diseases, Pests and Genetics Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #186598
Title: THE STUDY OF NATURAL PRODUCT BIOSYNTHESIS IN THE PREGENOMICS AND GENOMICS ERAS.

Author
item CHEN, FENG - UNIVOFTENNESSEE-KNOXVIL
item CSEKE, LELAND - UNIV OF ALABAMA-HUNTSVILL
item Lin, Hong
item KIRAKOSYAN, ARA - UNIV OF MICHIGAN-ANN ARBO
item YUAN, JOSHUA - UNIVOFTENNESSEE-KNOXVILLE
item KAUFMAN, PETER - UNIV OF MICHIGAN-ANN ARBO

Submitted to: Book Chapter
Publication Type: Book / Chapter
Publication Acceptance Date: 7/11/2005
Publication Date: 6/23/2006
Citation: Chen, F., Cseke, L., Lin, H., Kirakosyan, A., Yuan, J.S., Kaufman, P. 2006. The Study of Natural Product Biosynthesis in the Pregenomics and Genomics Eras. In: Cseke, L.J., Kirakosyan, A., Kaufman, P.B., Warber, S., Duke, J.A., Brielmann, H.L., editors. Natural Products from Plants. Second Edition. Florence, KY: CRC Press. p. 203-220.

Interpretive Summary: The study of plant natural products in the genomics age is undergoing a shift from one gene one product analysis to global network analysis. The biosynthesis of plant natural products in several plant species, such as A. thaliana, rice, and Medicago truncatula, which is a close relative of alfalfa, is currently being investigated at the global level in a high-throughput mode. In addition to facilitating the investigation of natural products biosynthesis, various genomic approaches will lead to the generation of large data sets, which can serve as a basis for using systems biology to understand the biological function of plant natural products. The elucidation of plant natural product biosynthesis will provide novel information for understanding the biology, ecology and evolution of plants, and also, provide tools for predictive metabolic engineering to improve plant traits that are determined by natural products.

Technical Abstract: Plants elaborate a vast array of natural products, many of which have evolved to confer selective advantages to the host plant in ecological interactions. These natural products are synthesized through a diverse array of biochemical pathways, most of which belong to secondary metabolism. The elucidation of these biochemical pathways has been a challenging undertaking. It requires the use of advanced tools from the disciplines of analytical chemistry, biochemistry, molecular biology and plant physiology. Before the advent of genomics, biochemical and genetic approaches were the two approaches employed in the study of plant natural product biosynthesis. In the genomics era, various genomic approaches, including transcriptomics, proteomics and metabolomics, have become available. As in general plant biology, the study of plant natural products in the genomics age is undergoing a paradigm shift from reductionist analysis to global analysis. The biosynthesis of plant natural products in several plant species, such as A. thaliana, rice, and Medicago truncatula, which is a close relative of alfalfa, is currently being investigated at the global level in a high-throughput mode. In addition to facilitating the investigation of natural products biosynthesis, the employment of various genomic approaches to the study will lead to the generation of large data sets, which can serve as a basis for using systems biology to understand the biological function of plant natural products. The elucidation of plant natural product biosynthesis will provide novel information for understanding the biology, ecology and evolution of plants, and also, provide tools for predictive metabolic engineering to improve plant traits that are determined by natural products.