Fructans and RFOs in plants

139.3K

views

95

authors

22

articles

Editors

3

Wim Van den Ende

University of Stuttgart

Marie-Pascale Prud'Homme

Université de Caen Normandie

Impact

Fetching...

About

Fructans (fructosyl extension of sucrose) and Raffinose Family Oligosaccharides (RFOs: galactosyl extensions of sucrose) are important classes of water soluble carbohydrates in plants. While fructans occur at higher levels in about 15% of flowering plants, the smallest RFO, raffinose, is more ubiquitous in higher plants. The accumulation of both carbohydrate types is often associated with abiotic and biotic stress responses.
Besides their role as reserve carbohydrates, membrane stabilizers, osmoregulators and stress tolerance mediators, it was recently proposed that smaller representatives of these sugars may contribute to cellular redox balances or act as phloem-mobile signaling compounds under stress. Curiously, so called non-fructan accumulating plants or plants that only contain marginal amounts of raffinose often express hydrolytic enzymes (FEHs: fructan exohydrolases; galactosidases) that are able to tackle these substrates. However, the inability to degrade sucrose (defective invertases) might be more important than their ability to degrade fructans or RFOs.
Here, we welcome papers on all aspects of fructan and RFO metabolism and signaling, with special focus on putative alternative roles for the sugars, FEHs, defective invertases and galactosidases involved, connections with sucrose metabolism, sugar signaling and hormone signaling, and the possible contribution of all these processes to cellular reactive oxygen species homeostasis under stress.

Fructans (fructosyl extension of sucrose) and Raffinose Family Oligosaccharides (RFOs: galactosyl extensions of sucrose) are important classes of water soluble carbohydrates in plants. While fructans occur at higher levels in about 15% of flowering plants, the smallest RFO, raffinose, is more ubiquitous in higher plants. The accumulation of both carbohydrate types is often associated with abiotic and biotic stress responses.
Besides their role as reserve carbohydrates, membrane stabilizers, osmoregulators and stress tolerance mediators, it was recently proposed that smaller representatives of these sugars may contribute to cellular redox balances or act as phloem-mobile signaling compounds under stress. Curiously, so called non-fructan accumulating plants or plants that only contain marginal amounts of raffinose often express hydrolytic enzymes (FEHs: fructan exohydrolases; galactosidases) that are able to tackle these substrates. However, the inability to degrade sucrose (defective invertases) might be more important than their ability to degrade fructans or RFOs.
Here, we welcome papers on all aspects of fructan and RFO metabolism and signaling, with special focus on putative alternative roles for the sugars, FEHs, defective invertases and galactosidases involved, connections with sucrose metabolism, sugar signaling and hormone signaling, and the possible contribution of all these processes to cellular reactive oxygen species homeostasis under stress.

Share

Editors

Wim Van den Ende

University of Stuttgart

Marie-Pascale Prud'Homme

Université de Caen Normandie

Impact

139,300 Total views

103,642 Article views

31,602 Article downloads

4,056 Topic views

Published In

Journal Thumbnail

Frontiers in Plant Science

Plant Physiology

Journal Thumbnail

Frontiers in Physiology

Plant Physiology

About Frontiers Research Topics

With their unique mixes of varied contributions from Original Research to Review Articles, Research Topics unify the most influential researchers, the latest key findings and historical advances in a hot research area! Find out more on how to host your own Frontiers Research Topic or contribute to one as an author.

Suggest a topic