Plant glycosyltransferases: their potential as novel biocatalysts

The potential application of glycosyltransferases in glycoconjugate synthesis has attracted considerable interest from the biotechnology community in recent years. This concept article focuses on the current understanding of the chemistry of a family of plant enzymes capable of glycosylating small lipophilic molecules. These enzymes are discussed in terms of their regio- and enantioselective substrate recognition, sugar-donor selectivity and their utility as biocatalysts in whole-cell systems.