Applications of Plant Metabolic Engineering

R. VERPOORTE Division of Pharmacognosy, section Metabolomics, IBL, Leiden University PO Box 9502, 2300RA Leiden, The Netherlands, Email: VERPOORT@LACDR.LeidenUniv.NL In the past years the interest in plant secondary has increased rapidly. Three major reasons can be mentioned for this. First because plants are a major source for the production of medicines and the development of novel medicines; second because plants contain health promoting secondary metabolites, third because of the interest in the resistance of plants against pests and diseases in which the secondary metabolism plays a crucial role. Seven years ago we edited a book (Verpoorte and Alfermann 2000) on the engineering of plant secondary metabolism. A general overview was given of plant secondary metabolism, and the strategies one could envisage for engineering plant secondary metabolite pathways. Furthermore, a number of examples were presented describing the state-of-the-art of engineering plant secondary metabolism. Now we have again compiled a series of papers on the engineering of plant metabolism.

Written by leading international experts in the field of plant metabolic engineering, this book discusses, mainly, applications of plant metabolic engineering. Metabolic engineering, which is part of second generation biotechnology, has made several contributions at basic level as well as at conceptualising products ever since its emergence in the early 1980s. Applications resulting from metabolic engineering are expected to play a very important role in future for plant breeding, e.g. for improved resistance or improved traits concerning health promoting constituents, and production of fine chemicals such as medicines, flavors and fragrances.

Considering the tremendous progress that has been made since our first book in the year 2000 urgency was felt to bring together cutting edge research in plant metabolic engineering in applied aspects as a handy reference book. This book has been predominantly dedicated to applied research of metabolic engineering, and a part of it hasbeen allotted for fundamental research that has potential applications. This book is a unique source of information for all those involved with plants as chemical factories of fine chemicals and also to more experienced scientists who work on transgenic plants, besides, senior researchers, graduate students, post-doctroral students, teachers and students as well.