苦瓜苦味物质及其生物合成研究进展

Progress on Bitter Principles and Its Biosynthesis in Bitter Gourd

苦瓜的苦味物质属于葫芦烷型三萜化合物,迄今已发现的主要有苦瓜皂苷元与苦瓜皂苷两类,并被证明对人类具有一定的药用价值。对苦瓜提取物及其苦味物质的化学结构、生物合成途径研究概况进行了综述,提出了苦瓜苦味物质生物合成的可能调控网络以及开展相关研究的方向。

The bitter principles in bitter gourd belong to cucurbitane-type triterpenoids including two primary types：sapogenin and saponin,which have been proved to possess some medicinal value to humans. This paper reviews the advances of chemical structures and biosynthesis of the bitter compounds. We put forward a putative regulatory network for bitter principles biosynthesis in bitter gourd and suggested the research directions in future.