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The Chloroplast pp 119–126Cite as

Chapter 8 The Methylerythritol 4-Phosphate Pathway: Regulatory Role in Plastid Isoprenoid Biosynthesis

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Part of the book series: Advances in Photosynthesis and Respiration ((AIPH,volume 31))

Summary

Plastids synthesize a variety of isoprenoid compounds that are essential for plant growth and development, like carotenoids, gibberellins, abscisic acid and the side chain of chlorophylls, plastoquinone and tocopherols. Some plastidial isoprenoids are also relevant for their biotechnological interest. The recently elucidated methylerythritol 4-phosphate (MEP) pathway provides the isopentenyl diphosphate and dimethylallyl diphosphate required for the synthesis of plastidial isoprenoids. At present, very little is known about the regulatory mechanisms underlying the control of the metabolic flux through the MEP pathway and its crosstalk with the cytosolic mevalonate (MVA) pathway. Here I summarize recent aspects related to the regulatory role of the MEP pathway in the synthesis of plastidial isoprenoids and the use of reverse genetic strategies to study the crosstalk between the MVA and the MEP pathways.

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Abbreviations

DXS:

1-deoxy-D-xylulose 5-phosphate synthase

DXR:

1-deoxy-D-xylulose 5-phosphate reductoisomerase

HDR:

1-hydroxy-2-methyl-2-(E)-butenyl diphosphate reductase

HMGR:

3-hydroxy-3-metylglutaryl coenzyme A reductase

MEP:

2-C-methyl-D-erythritol 4-phosphate

MEV:

mevinolin

MVA:

mevalonate

GGPP:

geranylgeranyl diphosphate

FSM:

fosmidomycin

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Acknowledgements

Work from my group has been funded by grants BIO2006-003704 from the Spanish Ministerio de Educación y Ciencia and 2005SGR00914 from the Generalitat de Catalunya

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Biology, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Barcelona, 08028, Barcelona, Spain

    Albert Boronat

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  1. Albert Boronat
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Correspondence to Albert Boronat .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Rebeiz Foundation for Basic Research, Champaign, USA

    Constantin A. Rebeiz

  2. Michigan State University, East Lansing, USA

    Christoph Benning

  3. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, USA

    Hans J. Bohnert

  4. Central Florida University, Orlando, USA

    Henry Daniell

  5. Arizona State University, Tempe, USA

    J. Kenneth Hoober

  6. University of Karlsruhe, Germany

    Hartmut K. Lichtenthaler

  7. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, USA

    Archie R. Portis

  8. Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India

    Baishnab C. Tripathy

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Boronat, A. (2010). Chapter 8 The Methylerythritol 4-Phosphate Pathway: Regulatory Role in Plastid Isoprenoid Biosynthesis. In: Rebeiz, C.A., et al. The Chloroplast. Advances in Photosynthesis and Respiration, vol 31. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-8531-3_8

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