Convergent Biochemical Pathways for Xanthine Alkaloid Production in Plants Evolved from Ancestral Enzymes with Different Catalytic Properties.

ABSTRACT: Convergent evolution is widespread but the extent to which common ancestral conditions are necessary to facilitate the independent acquisition of similar traits remains unclear. In order to better understand how ancestral biosynthetic catalytic capabilities might lead to convergent evolution of similar modern-day biochemical pathways, we resurrected ancient enzymes of the caffeine synthase (CS) methyltransferases that are responsible for theobromine and caffeine production in flowering plants. Ancestral CS enzymes of Theobroma, Paullinia, and Camellia exhibited similar substrate preferences but these resulted in the formation of different sets of products. From these ancestral enzymes, descendants with similar substrate preference and product formation independently evolved after gene dupl

SUBMITTER: O'Donnell AJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8233510 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature