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The origin and evolution of lignin biosynthesis
Author(s) -
Weng JingKe,
Chapple Clint
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
new phytologist
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.742
H-Index - 244
eISSN - 1469-8137
pISSN - 0028-646X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1469-8137.2010.03327.x
Subject(s) - monolignol , lignin , biosynthesis , monomer , chemistry , botany , biology , polymer , biochemistry , organic chemistry , gene
Summary Lignin, a phenolic polymer derived mainly from hydroxycinnamyl alcohols, is ubiquitously present in tracheophytes. The development of lignin biosynthesis has been considered to be one of the key factors that allowed land plants to flourish in terrestrial ecosystems. Lignin provides structural rigidity for tracheophytes to stand upright, and strengthens the cell wall of their water‐conducting tracheary elements to withstand the negative pressure generated during transpiration. In this review, we discuss a number of aspects regarding the origin and evolution of lignin biosynthesis during land plant evolution, including the establishment of its monomer biosynthetic scaffold, potential precursors to the lignin polymer, as well as the emergence of the polymerization machinery and regulatory system. The accumulated knowledge on the topic, as summarized here, provides us with an evolutionary view on how this complex metabolic system emerged and developed.ContentsSummary 273 I. Introduction 273 II. Emergence of the monolignol biosynthetic scaffold 274 III. Occurrence and elaboration of lignification in tracheophytes 280 IV. Concluding remarks 282Acknowledgements 282References 282