Yanfu Wang , Danyan Ding

Institute of Life Sciences, Jiyang College of Zhejiang A&F University, Zhuji, 311800, Zhejiang, China
Author    Correspondence author
Rice Genomics and Genetics, 2025, Vol. 16, No. 6   
Received: 30 Oct., 2025    Accepted: 15 Nov., 2025    Published: 28 Dec., 2025

This is an open access article published under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Purple rice is increasingly attracting attention due to its rich anthocyanin content, which has significant nutritional and health benefits. Modifying the biosynthesis of engineered anthocyanins through synthetic pathways offers a promising strategy for developing rice varieties with health care functions to meet the growing market demand for healthy foods. This study reviews the molecular basis of anthocyanin biosynthesis in rice, with a focus on key structural genes (such as CHS, DFR, ANS and UFGT) as well as regulatory factors including MYB, bHLH and WD40. Meanwhile, the role of the MYB-bHLH-WD40 complex and its transcriptional regulatory network in tissue-specific expression were explored. Further, various synthetic biology strategies promoting anthocyanin accumulation were analyzed, including heterologous gene introduction, gene stacking, and endogenous pathway editing mediated by the CRISPR/Cas system. This study also lists typical cases from India, South Korea and China, demonstrating the practical exploration and achievements in the development of purple rice. This study aims to establish a research framework integrating synthetic pathway modification, functional verification and field application, in order to promote the commercial development of high anthocyanin rice.

Purple rice; Anthocyanin synthesis; Synthetic biology; Genetic engineering; Functional rice breeding