Pectins and flavonoids are two related groups of important secondary metabolites derived from plants. The interaction between pectins and flavonoids can affect their shelf-life stability, functionality, bioavailability, and bioaccessibility. In this chapter, we will concentrate on the current opinions on the flavonoids to understand how to classify this group of secondary metabolites, what biological and pharmacological activities they possess, and how to biosynthesize them in plants. We will then discuss the general strategies for the derivation of these small secondary compounds. The strategies comprise traditional plant extraction, chemical synthesis, and biosynthesis. We will also discuss the advantages and disadvantages of these three production strategies in the derivation of flavonoids and the future research directions in generating health-beneficial flavonoids using the biosynthetic strategy.
Part of the book: Pectins