The Secret of Coffee genes in Coffee Encyclopedia

Researchers from France, China and other countries published the first draft of the genome of coffee in the US journal Science on the 4th. This result reveals the evolutionary history of caffeine in coffee and helps to cultivate new coffee varieties with better flavor and resistance to climate change and pests.

Researchers from institutions such as the French Institute for Development reported that they had sequenced the genomes of two of the most important commercial coffees, Robusta and Arabica. Compared with other plants such as grapes and tomatoes, coffee is genetically more likely to produce alkaloids and flavonoids, which are closely related to the aroma and bitterness of coffee, the researchers said. Coffee also has more N-methyltransferase, a substance involved in caffeine synthesis. The enzymes associated with caffeine synthesis in coffee are not similar to those in tea and cocoa, suggesting that caffeine may have evolved independently.

An article distributed at the same time in the journal Science stressed the need to transform the coffee genome into a new tool to help coffee cultivation in the context of a decline in the diversity of coffee plants around the world. Scientists must share data on characteristics such as aroma and flavor, and engage in international cooperation with developing countries that export coffee to cultivate new varieties of coffee and help coffee withstand the effects of climate change and plant diseases.

The world consumes about 2.25 billion cups of coffee a day. The International Coffee Organization estimates that in 2013, the world produced 8.7 billion tons of coffee, solving the employment problem of nearly 26 million people in more than 50 coffee-exporting countries and generating 15.4 billion US dollars in income for these countries.