Spotlight on the overlapping routes and partners for anthocyanin transport in plants

Abstract

Secondary metabolites are produced by plants and are classified based on their chemical structure or the biosynthetic routes through which they are synthesized. Among them, flavonoids, including anthocyanins and pro‐anthocyanidins (PAs), are abundant in leaves, flowers, fruits, and seed coats in plants. The anthocyanin biosynthetic pathway has been intensively studied, but the molecular mechanism of anthocyanin transport from the synthesis site to the storage site needs attention. Although the major transporters are well defined yet, the redundancy of these transporters for structurally similar or dis‐similar anthocyanins motivates additional research. Herein, we reviewed the role of membrane transporters involved in anthocyanin transport, including ATP‐binding cassette, multidrug and toxic compound extrusion (MATE), Bilitranslocase‐homolog (BTL), and vesicle‐mediated transport. We also highlight the ability of transporters to cater distinct anthocyanins or their chemically‐modified forms with overlapping transport mechanisms and sequestration into the vacuoles. Our understanding of the anthocyanin transporters could provide anthocyanin‐rich crops and fruits with a benefit on human health at a large scale.

A Survey of Enhanced Cold Tolerance and Low-Temperature-Induced Anthocyanin Accumulation in a Novel Zoysia japonica Biotype

“…Anthocyanins are synthesized in cytosol and endoplasmic reticulum membrane system, then transported into vacuoles via ABC transporters located in tonoplast [ 39 , 88 , 89 , 90 , 91 , 92 ]. In this study, three genes that were uniquely up-regulated in YN-9 lay in the overlap of auxin transport and pigmentation accumulation GOs.…”

Functional Characterization of MtrGSTF7, a Glutathione S-Transferase Essential for Anthocyanin Accumulation in Medicago truncatula

“…In both models, the transport is assisted by GST. In particular, GST of the phi group are those involved in anthocyanin transport, with GSTs also having a plethora of different roles [ 35 ]. Biochemical assay has proved the binding of GST to anthocyanin in a few species, including Arabidopsis tt19; the conservation of the anthocyanin binding function was proved for GST from several other species by complementation analysis of the Arabidopsis tt19 mutant.…”

Flavonoid mediated selective cross-talk between plants and beneficial soil microbiome

“…2 ). In this transport system, anthocyanins are transported to vacuoles through autophagy, either micro- or macro-autophagy (Kaur et al 2021 ; Michaeli et al 2014 ). GSTs function as ligandins, via the formation of glutathione conjugated anthocyanins, to accommodate the efficient and dynamic transport of anthocyanins.…”

“…A complicated process transports anthocyanin end-products from the site of production to the vacuole in plant tissues. Vesicle transportation and vacuolar membrane transporters give various pathways for vacuolar sequestration of anthocyanin (Kaur et al 2021 ). Overall, the evidence presented here provides a current peek into how altering the function of transporters might aid in the anthocyanin enrichment of tissues.…”