New insights on bioactivities and biosynthesis of flavonoid glycosides

Flavonoid glycosides are widespread in plants, acting as phytoalexin against biotic stress. They also have great health benefits to human body. Some of them have been used as medicines and nutraceuticals due to good bioactivities and low toxicities. Glycosylation affords structural complexity and diversity of flavonoids. It further modifies the bioactivity and bioavailability in vivo. In this article, the up-to-date development on flavonoid glycosides and their bioactivities are reviewed. As metabolic engineering is a promising strategy to produce flavonoid glycosides in the future, the information about glycosyltransferase and metabolic flux in flavonoid glycoside production are discussed.