Genes in Alkaloid Metabolism

Abstract

This chapter reviews tropane alkaloids and focuses in the areas of occurrence and synthesis. The tropane alkaloids are a structurally well-defined group of natural products, and the mydriatic and anesthetic properties of several of the tropane alkaloids were exploited long before the structures were elucidated. The common structural element of the tropane alkaloids is the azabicyclo[3.2.l] octane skeleton, and the systematic name for tropane is 8-methyl-8-azabicyclo[3.2.1] octane. The strict application of the system adopted is certainly in several cases a simplification of the real situation and should be regarded as such. Trivial names are used where they exist, while for other compounds a semisystematic name based on the word “tropane” (vide infra) is adopted. The chapter explores that the tropane alkaloids mainly occur in the plant family Solanaceae, but are found as well in the families Convolvulaceae, Erythroxylaceae, Proteaceae, and Rhizophoraceae. Tropane alkaloids are relatively simple molecules, and it is entirely possible that the ability of plants to synthesize them has developed separately in unrelated families. Therefore, the isolation of the same alkaloid in two species is considered as a taxonomic marker only if the alkaloid is shown to be produced through the same biosynthetic pathway in both species. © 1993 Academic Press, Inc.