Quote: >Even more sinister - engineer in genes for the cocaine alkaloid synthetic >pathway into other plants/crops. Instead of caffeine, why not have the C. >arabica >produce cocaine?
Tissue culture - vats of E. coca cells - may already be in business. Then add weird precursors and let them churn out 'designer' gook. But why cocaine (or caffeine, or theobromine) in leaves at all? Because they are insecticides - neurotoxins - evolved to kill things which chew leaves, seeds etc. When Biogas was big in Brazil there used to be a cocktail called - I think - a Matadora, which was gasohol plus pineapple juice. A Super Matadora had a pinch of Parathion wettable powder added to give it 'kick'. Same principle. It always strikes me as odd that plants as highly evolved as the orchids, and with such obvious sensitivity to insect 'expectations' through form, pheromones, scent - do not have equivalent toxins in play. Probably they do - some juvenile hormone analogues are active to parts per tenth of a billion, and if one is not looking for them, one won't see them in action. Nerve toxins are pretty crude when compared to what plants can do when pressed. _____________________________________ Oliver Sparrow Tel: UK (0)20 7736 9716 www.chforum.org www.treknepal.org www.trekperu.org www.datafreeze.com _______________________________________________ the OrchidGuide Digest (OGD) [email protected] http://orchidguide.com/mailman/listinfo/orchids_orchidguide.com
