AtMYB4: a transcription factor general in the battle against UV.

Mounting evidence indicates that members of the large family of plant MYB proteins are involved in the transcriptional regulation of an array of metabolic and developmental processes. Recently, the Arabidopsis thaliana MYB, AtMYB4, was shown to regulate the accumulation of the UV-protectant compound sinapoylmalate by repressing the transcription of the gene encoding the phenylpropanoid enzyme cinnamate 4-hydroxylase. AtMYB4 is thus a key regulator of phenylpropanoid pathway gene expression, and is the first example of a MYB protein that functions as a transcriptional repressor.