TOKYO, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- Capsaicin is a spicy component unique to chili peppers. It is also a Solanaceae plant, why can't tomatoes, potatoes, etc. synthesize capsaicin?A new study in Japan seeks to unravel the mechanism, and the results may help breed new varieties of vegetables such as "spicy tomatoes" and "spicy potatoes".
Kyoto University in Japan recently issued a communiqué saying that previous studies have found that the PAMT gene in peppers plays a key role in the process of capsaicin synthesis. The team of researchers from the university compared the genomes of chili peppers with other Solanaceae plants and found that the PAMT gene belongs to one of the GABA-T genes commonly found in Solanaceae, but it has two characteristics that other GABA-T genes do not have, one is that it has a special transcription pattern at the site where capsaicin is synthesized in peppers, and the other is that it has high catalytic activity against vanillin in the process of capsaicin synthesis. These two properties make the PAMT gene a gene that specializes in the synthesis of capsaicin.
Researchers say that capsaicin has effects such as promoting fat metabolism and thermogenesis, and its health benefits have attracted attention. If further research is carried out to make capsaicin synthesized by other Solanaceae plants, it is expected that new varieties of vegetables such as "spicy tomatoes" will be cultivated.
The findings have been published in the international academic journal Botany.