Signaling function of dehydroabietinal in plant defense and development

Plants provide the bulk of the nearly 12,000 diterpenoid natural products, which include diterpene resin acids that have important medicinal and industrial applications. However, the biological function of these terpenoids in plants is poorly understood. Here, we highlight recent work that implicates a signaling function in angiosperms for some of these diterpenoids. In particular, this review will focus on the involvement of an abietane diterpenoid, dehydroabietinal, in the activation of systemic acquired resistance, and draw attention to new evidence that supports a role for dehydroabietinal in the transition from the vegetative phase of growth to reproductive development in the crucifer plant Arabidopsis thaliana.