4-Coumarate:coenzyme A ligase (4CL) catalyzes the conversion of hydroxyciinamates into corresponding CoA esters for biosynthesis of flavonoids and lignin. In this study, five members of the 4CL gene family from rice were cloned and analyzed. Recombinant 4CL data revealed that 4-coumaric acid and ferulic acid were the two main substrates of 4CL (Os4CL1/3/4/5) for monolignol biosynthesis in rice. Os4CL2 was specifically expressed in the anther and was strongly activated by UV irradiation, suggesting its potential involvement in flavonoid formation. Moreover, bioinformatics analysis showed that the existence of valine residue at the substrate-binding pocket may mainly affect rice 4CL activities toward sinapic acid. (C) 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.