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Updated: Aug 16, 2025
A Customizable Approach for the Enzymatic Production and Purification of Diterpenoid Natural Products
Published on: October 4, 2019
Medicinal terpenoid UDP-glycosyltransferases in plants: recent advances and research strategies
Xu Lu1,2,3,4, Lijin Huang2, Henrik V Scheller3,5
1Department of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA.
Abstract:
Terpenoid glycosides have significant curative effects on many kinds of diseases. Most of these compounds are derived from medicinal plants. Glycosylation is a key step in the biosynthesis of medicinal terpenoids. In plants, UDP-dependent glycosyltransferases comprise a large family of enzymes that catalyze the transfer of sugars from donor to acceptor to form various bioactive glycosides. In recent years, numerous terpenoid UDP-glycosyltransferases (UGTs) have been cloned and characterized in medicinal plants. We review the typical characteristics and evolution of terpenoid-related UGTs in plants and summarize the advances and research strategies of terpenoid UGTs in medicinal plants over the past 20 years. We provide a reference for the study of glycosylation of terpenoid skeletons and the biosynthetic pathways for medicinal terpenoids in plants.
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