Biosynthesis of the allelopathic alkaloid gramine in barley by a cryptic oxidative rearrangement. (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38547266/)

These scientists wanted to understand how a special chemical called gramine is made in plants and how it can protect the plants from insects. They found a gene called AMI synthase that helps in making gramine in different plants like Nicotiana benthamiana, Arabidopsis thaliana, and Saccharomyces cerevisiae. They also figured out a way to add or remove this gene in barley plants using a special tool called Cas9. By studying how this gene works, they discovered a new process that converts one type of molecule into gramine. This discovery can help scientists make changes in barley plants to make them better at fighting off insects.

Dias SL., Chuang L., Liu S., Seligmann B., Brendel FL., Chavez BG., Hoffie RE., Hoffie I., Kumlehn J., Bultemeier A., Wolf J., Herde M., Witte CP., D'Auria JC., Franke J. Biosynthesis of the allelopathic alkaloid gramine in barley by a cryptic oxidative rearrangement. Science. 2024 Mar 29;383(6690):1448-1454. doi: 10.1126/science.adk6112. Epub 2024 Mar 28.