Approaches to biosynthesis of salidroside and its key metabolic enzymes

As a main component of efficiency in Rhodiola plants, salidroside is a promising environmental acclamation medicine and possesses specific medical properties against symptoms of fatigue, old age, microwave radiation, viral infections and tumors. Salidroside plays important roles, especially in military, aerospace, sport and healthcare medicine and has, therefore, recently, drawn more and closer attention. This article probes mainly into the probable biosynthetic pathway of salidroside following a brief introduction of the exploitation and utilization values of Rhodiola plants and the current condition of its natural resources. We have come to the conclusion that tyrosol, the aglycon of salidroside, is biosynthesized through the well-characterized shikimic acid pathway. A molecule of glucose is transferred by the UDP-glucosyltransferase (or possibly by the β-D-glucosidase too) to the tyrosol to form salidroside. On the other hand, salidroside may be degraded into tyrosol and glucose by β-D-glucosidase. Progress in research of these two key-enzymes, involved in the metabolism of salidroside, is finally elaborated.