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secondary-metabolites

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Secondary metabolites are organic compounds produced by plants that are not directly required for basic growth or reproduction, but instead serve specialized ecological roles such as defense against herbivores and pathogens, attraction of pollinators, and competition with neighboring plants. Understanding these compounds is central to plant biology research because they represent the chemical language through which plants interact with their environment. Beyond their ecological significance, secondary metabolites are also a rich source of pharmaceuticals, dyes, and agrochemicals, making their biosynthesis and regulation a major focus of plant science.

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