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Updated: Apr 11, 2026

Caffeine Extraction, Enzymatic Activity and Gene Expression of Caffeine Synthase from Plant Cell Suspensions
Published on: October 2, 2018
Biosynthesis of caffeine underlying the diversity of motif B' methyltransferase
Abstract:
Caffeine (1,3,7-trimethylxanthine) and theobromine (3,7-dimethylxanthine) are well-known purine alkaloids in Camellia, Coffea, Cola, Paullinia, Ilex, and Theobroma spp. The caffeine biosynthetic pathway depends on the substrate specificity of N-methyltransferases, which are members of the motif B' methyl-transferase family. The caffeine biosynthetic pathways in purine alkaloid-containing plants might have evolved in parallel with one another, consistent with different catalytic properties of the enzymes involved in these pathways.
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