Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2015 May:113:24-32.
doi: 10.1016/j.phytochem.2014.12.010. Epub 2014 Dec 31.

The bitter side of the nightshades: Genomics drives discovery in Solanaceae steroidal alkaloid metabolism

P D Cárdenas  1 , P D Sonawane  2 , U Heinig  2 , S E Bocobza  2 , S Burdman  3 , A Aharoni  4
Affiliations
Review

The bitter side of the nightshades: Genomics drives discovery in Solanaceae steroidal alkaloid metabolism

P D Cárdenas et al. Phytochemistry. 2015 May.

Abstract

Steroidal alkaloids (SAs) and their glycosylated forms (SGAs) are toxic compounds largely produced by members of the Solanaceae and Liliaceae plant families. This class of specialized metabolites serves as a chemical barrier against a broad range of pest and pathogens. In humans and animals, SAs are considered anti-nutritional factors because they affect the digestion and absorption of nutrients from food and might even cause poisoning. In spite of the first report on SAs nearly 200 years ago, much of the molecular basis of their biosynthesis and regulation remains unknown. Aspects concerning chemical structures and biological activities of SAs have been reviewed extensively elsewhere; therefore, in this review the latest insights to the elucidation of the SAs biosynthetic pathway are highlighted. Recently, co-expression analysis combined with metabolic profiling revealed metabolic gene clusters in tomato and potato that contain core genes required for production of the prominent SGAs in these two species. Elaborating the knowledge regarding the SAs biosynthetic pathway, the subcellular transport of these molecules, as well as the identification of regulatory and signaling factors associated with SA metabolism will likely advance understanding of chemical defense mechanisms in Solanaceae and Liliaceae plants. It will also provide the means to develop, through classical breeding or genetic engineering, crops with modified levels of anti-nutritional SAs.

Keywords: Metabolic gene clusters; Solanaceae; Steroidal alkaloids.

PubMed Disclaimer

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

LinkOut - more resources