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Flavonoids: Their Structure, Biosynthesis and Role in the Rhizosphere, Including Allelopathy

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Abstract

Flavonoids are biologically active low molecular weight secondary metabolites that are produced by plants, with over 10,000 structural variants now reported. Due to their physical and biochemical properties, they interact with many diverse targets in subcellular locations to elicit various activities in microbes, plants, and animals. In plants, flavonoids play important roles in transport of auxin, root and shoot development, pollination, modulation of reactive oxygen species, and signalling of symbiotic bacteria in the legume Rhizobium symbiosis. In addition, they possess antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, and anticancer activities. In the plant, flavonoids are transported within and between plant tissues and cells, and are specifically released into the rhizosphere by roots where they are involved in plant/plant interactions or allelopathy. Released by root exudation or tissue degradation over time, both aglycones and glycosides of flavonoids are found in soil solutions and root exudates. Although the relative role of flavonoids in allelopathic interference has been less well-characterized than that of some secondary metabolites, we present classic examples of their involvement in autotoxicity and allelopathy. We also describe their activity and fate in the soil rhizosphere in selected examples involving pasture legumes, cereal crops, and ferns. Potential research directions for further elucidation of the specific role of flavonoids in soil rhizosphere interactions are considered.

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Acknowledgements

The authors are grateful to the Australian Research Council for funding for a Future Fellowship to UM (FT100100669) and New South Wales Office of Medical and Science Research for funding a Biofirst Life Sciences Research Fellowship to LAW. The authors also acknowledge the helpful reviews received during the review process.

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  1. EH Graham Centre, Charles Sturt University, Wagga Wagga, NSW, 2678, Australia

    Leslie A. Weston

  2. Division of Plant Science, Research School of Biology, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, 0200, Australia

    Ulrike Mathesius

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Correspondence to Leslie A. Weston.

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Weston, L.A., Mathesius, U. Flavonoids: Their Structure, Biosynthesis and Role in the Rhizosphere, Including Allelopathy. J Chem Ecol 39, 283–297 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10886-013-0248-5

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