Fangyuan Zhang, Fei Qiu, Junlan Zeng, Zhichao Xu, Yueli Tang, Tengfei Zhao, Yuqin Gou, Fei Su, Shiyi Wang, Xiuli Sun, Zheyong Xue, Weixing Wang, Chunxian Yang, Lingjiang Zeng, Xiaozhong Lan, Min Chen, Junhui Zhou, Zhihua Liao
Tropane alkaloids (TAs) are widely distributed in the Solanaceae, while some important medicinal tropane alkaloids (mTAs), such as hyoscyamine and scopolamine, are restricted to certain species/tribes in this family. Little is known about the genomic basis and evolution of TAs biosynthesis and specialization in the Solanaceae. Here, we present chromosome-level genomes of two representative mTAs-producing species: Atropa belladonna and Datura stramonium. Our results reveal that the two species employ a conserved biosynthetic pathway to produce mTAs despite being distantly related within the nightshade family...
March 15, 2023: Nature Communications