Seed storage oil catabolism: a story of give and take

► Storage oil hydrolysis fuels establishment but not all lipases have been identified. ► The enzymology but not regulation of fatty acid β-oxidation has been well studied. ► Peroxisome membrane transporters have been identified but key questions remain. ► The role of β-oxidation in seed germination is now much better understood. ► TAG metabolism may play important but as yet undefined roles in vegetative tissues. The transition from seed to seedling is an important step in the life cycle of plants, which is fuelled primarily by the breakdown of triacylglycerol (TAG) in ‘oilseed’ species. TAG is stored within cytosolic oil bodies, while the pathway for fatty acid β-oxidation resides in the peroxisome. Although the enzymology of fatty acid β-oxidation has been relatively well characterised, the processes by which fatty acids are liberated from oil bodies and enter the peroxisome are less well understood and, together with metabolite, cofactor and co-substrate transporters, represent key targets for future research in order to understand co-ordination of peroxisomal metabolism with that of other subcellular compartments.