Anthocyanins and Proanthocyanidins are a class of secondary metabolites belonging to the flavonoid group. While anthocyanins are responsible for the red-orange to blue-violet colors in plant organs (vegetative and reproductive), Proanthocyanidins (also known as condensed tannins) are not always pigmented. They both however possess antioxidant properties and have protective functions that are integral to plant survival and resistance to a range of abiotic and biotic stresses. They also contribute to fruit and vegetable flavor and influence crop and product quality.

Over the last few decades, significant progress has been made towards understanding, characterizing, engineering, regulating, and medical application of anthocyanins and proanthocyanidins. There is however some gap in investigating the application of these compounds for enhanced crop improvement. A lot is still yet to be understood with respect to it biosynthesis and accumulation in plants both as a function of plant development and response to the environment. For example, fruit ripening may lead to the accumulation of one class of proanthocyanidins and anthocyanins and a decrease in others. Similarly, the evolution of varietal pigment differences and the ability to stimulate anthocyanin biosynthesis in green varieties of fruit for example by stress induction also indicates that aspects of the regulation of enzymes involved in the biosynthesis are still unknown.

In this Research Topic, we invite submissions of all article types published by Frontiers in Plant Science that provide an update on the biosynthesis, accumulation, and regulation of anthocyanin and proanthocyanidin with respect to (but not limited to) the following sub-themes

• Changes in biosynthesis and accumulation with respect to plant growth and development under stress and non-stress conditions
• Metabolic engineering of production to improve food and fruit crop quality
• Environmental influence on biosynthesis and accumulation – the effect of light, temperature, phytohormones, plant nutrient status – singly and under combined environmental factors.
• Transportation and localization
• Identification of genes encoding rate-limiting enzymes in the metabolic pathway
• Mechanism by which modifications such as glycosylation, methylation, and acylation stabilize compound and influence function
• Elucidation of the specific regulatory mechanisms of how these pathways have been evolved

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