Terpene Synthases and Terpene Variation in Cannabis sativa

Terpene synthases from Cannabis sativa

Cannabis (Cannabis sativa) plants produce and accumulate a terpene-rich resin in glandular trichomes, which are abundant on the surface of the female inflorescence. Bouquets of different monoterpenes and sesquiterpenes are important components of cannabis resin as they define some of the unique organoleptic properties and may also influence medicinal qualities of different cannabis strains and ...

Terpene synthases are widely distributed in bacteria.

Odoriferous terpene metabolites of bacterial origin have been known for many years. In genome-sequenced Streptomycetaceae microorganisms, the vast majority produces the degraded sesquiterpene alcohol geosmin. Two minor groups of bacteria do not produce geosmin, with one of these groups instead producing other sesquiterpene alcohols, whereas members of the remaining group do not produce any dete...

Novel olfactory ligands via terpene synthases.

A synthetic biology approach to the rational design of analogues of olfactory ligands by providing unnatural substrates for the enzyme synthesising (S)-germacrene D, an olfactory ligand acting as a plant derived insect repellent, to produce novel ligands is described as a viable alternative to largely unsuccessful ligand docking studies. (S)-14,15-Dimethylgermacrene D shows an unexpected revers...

Rapid chemical characterization of bacterial terpene synthases.

Terpene Synthases: One Fold, Many Products

Terpene synthases/cyclases yield core structures of some of the most valuable bioactive molecules, such as artemisinin and paclitaxel. A detailed understanding of structure–function relationship of terpene synthases/ cyclases delineates the evolutionary relationship between different enzymes and molecular basis of their strategies to direct and manipulate carbocation intermdiates throughout the...