Increasing Crop Carotenoids By Metabolic Sink Manipulation

Carotenoids are important for human nutrition and health. This group of compounds is represented by a class of red, orange and yellow pigments found in nature. Plant carotenoids are important precursor of provitamin A. Many of the major staple crops do not contain adequate amounts of carotenoids. Thus, many researchers are examining how the biosynthetic genes of these compounds can be manipulated. A review paper from Cornell University discusses strategies to develop varieties with the desired levels of carotenoids in different crops.

Li Li and Joyce Van Eck wrote that the creation of a metabolic sink is an important mechanism to control carotenoid accumulation. Metabolic sinksinclude carotenoid sequestering compounds that seize excess carotenoids from the plants biosynthetic pathway thus enhancing the level of carotenoids in storage tissues of food crops. The formation of such compounds in transgenic plants may be a promising strategy for maximally improving the nutritional quality of crops, said the researchers after their work on the Orange (Or) gene in cauliflower.

The review paper, published in Transgenic Research can be accessed by subscribers at http://www.springerlink.com/content/x24020j2206r3162/.