In contrast to the detailed knowledge available on the biosynthesis of anthocyanins, very little is known about the stability and degradation of these pigments in plant tissue. Two of the major research questions of my group are: How are anthocyanins degraded in plants? What role does the pigment catabolism process play in the final determination of pigment concentration in flower foliage or fruit?

Recently , we expanded our studies to interactions between anthocyanin and other phenyproanoid pathways, in particular the benzenoid pathway responsible for production of fragrant compounds. We are currently studying the metabolic and genomic effect of increased phenylalanine concentrations in genetically engineered petunia, lisianthus and in a grape cell culture.