Regulation of plant glucosinolate metabolism

Glucosinolates and their degradation products are known to play important roles in plant interaction with herbivores and micro-organisms. In addition, they are important for human life. For example, some degradation products are flavor compounds and some exhibit anticarcinogenic properties. Recent years have seen great progress made in the understanding of glucosinolate biosynthesis in Arabidopsis thaliana. The core glucosinolate biosynthetic pathway has been revealed using biochemical and reverse genetics approaches. Future research needs to focus on questions related to regulation and control of glucosinolate metabolism. Here we review current status of studies on the regulation of glucosinolate metabolism at different levels, and highlight future research towards elucidating the signaling and metabolic network that control glucosinolate metabolism.