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Unraveling plant TERPENOID diversity
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OUR RESEARCH VISION
Learning from natures ingenuity. Plants produce a staggering diversity of specialized ('secondary') metabolites to survive and thrive in a constantly changing environment for life spans of up hundreds of years. Terpenoids are the largest and most diverse class of specialized metabolites with essential functions in plant growth, chemical defense and ecological adaptation. Many terpenoids are also of economic value as pharmaceuticals, flavors, fragrances, biofuels, and other bioproducts of everyday modern life. To decode the biosynthesis, diversity and biological functions of terpenoid metabolic networks in food, bioenergy and medicinal plants, we integrate genomics-enabled pathway discovery, metabolomics, protein biochemistry, structural biology, bioactivity, and genetic approaches. Through collaborative work, we then utilize these insights to develop resources for improving crop traits and advance terpenoid production through protein and pathway engineering.
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