Beaudoin Guillaume A W, Facchini Peter J
Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, T2N 1N4, Canada.
Planta. 2014 Jul;240(1):19-32. doi: 10.1007/s00425-014-2056-8. Epub 2014 Mar 27.
Opium poppy (Papaver somniferum) is one of the world's oldest medicinal plants and remains the only commercial source for the narcotic analgesics morphine, codeine and semi-synthetic derivatives such as oxycodone and naltrexone. The plant also produces several other benzylisoquinoline alkaloids with potent pharmacological properties including the vasodilator papaverine, the cough suppressant and potential anticancer drug noscapine and the antimicrobial agent sanguinarine. Opium poppy has served as a model system to investigate the biosynthesis of benzylisoquinoline alkaloids in plants. The application of biochemical and functional genomics has resulted in a recent surge in the discovery of biosynthetic genes involved in the formation of major benzylisoquinoline alkaloids in opium poppy. The availability of extensive biochemical genetic tools and information pertaining to benzylisoquinoline alkaloid metabolism is facilitating the study of a wide range of phenomena including the structural biology of novel catalysts, the genomic organization of biosynthetic genes, the cellular and sub-cellular localization of biosynthetic enzymes and a variety of biotechnological applications. In this review, we highlight recent developments and summarize the frontiers of knowledge regarding the biochemistry, cellular biology and biotechnology of benzylisoquinoline alkaloid biosynthesis in opium poppy.
罂粟（Papaver somniferum）是世界上最古老的药用植物之一，并且仍然是麻醉性镇痛药吗啡、可待因以及半合成衍生物如羟考酮和纳曲酮的唯一商业来源。该植物还产生几种具有强大药理特性的其他苄基异喹啉生物碱，包括血管舒张剂罂粟碱、止咳剂和潜在抗癌药物那可丁以及抗菌剂血根碱。罂粟已成为研究植物中苄基异喹啉生物碱生物合成的模型系统。生物化学和功能基因组学的应用导致最近在罂粟中发现参与主要苄基异喹啉生物碱形成的生物合成基因方面出现了激增。广泛的生物化学遗传工具以及与苄基异喹啉生物碱代谢相关的信息的可用性，正在促进对广泛现象的研究，包括新型催化剂的结构生物学、生物合成基因的基因组组织、生物合成酶的细胞和亚细胞定位以及各种生物技术应用。在本综述中，我们重点介绍了最近的进展，并总结了关于罂粟中苄基异喹啉生物碱生物合成的生物化学、细胞生物学和生物技术的知识前沿。
