Critical Knowledge About Opiums Atomic Structure Discovered by Danforth Center Researchers
Summary
“Opium may be one of the oldest medicinal plants but we are now discovering more about its pathway to enable the development of alternate sources of known pharmaceuticals and of novel drugs.” Next, Smith and his colleagues used a technique called X-ray crystallography to find the locations of all of the atoms in this enzyme.“Understanding how the enzyme works at an atomic level can further our understanding of the complex reactions that the poppy uses to produce opium,” said Smith.The results of this research are published in the recent article, "The Atomic Structure of Salutaridine reductase from the Opium Poppy Papaver Somniferum," in The Journal of Biological Chemistry.Kutchan and her team investigate opium’s biosynthetic pathway to learn more about how this medicinal plant is able to produce morphine, one of the most frequently used medicines worldwide.“Opium may be one of the oldest medicinal plants but we are now discovering more about its pathway to enable the development of alternate sources of known pharmaceuticals and of novel drugs.”Next, Smith and his colleagues used a technique called X-ray crystallography to find the locations of all of the atoms in this enzyme.The Center’s work is funded through competitive grants and contract revenue from many sources, including the National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Energy, National Science Foundation, U.S. Department of Agriculture, U.S. Agency for International Development and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.### Contact Information Donald Danforth Plant Science Center Melanie Bernds 314-587-1647 www.danforthcenter.org Follow us on twitter www.danforthcenter.org Improving the Human Condition through Plant Science Click here to view the list of recent Press Releases from Donald Danforth Plant Science Center Promote Your Business Press Release Pricing Email this page to a friend