Whether you're a coffee addict or just like to chug a cup of joe in the morning before work, it seems like coffee plays a tremendous role in each of our lives. However, we never really stop to think about what coffee is made of other than, "Does it have enough caffeine to help me interact with other humans today?"
Knowing the heredity of a plant can actually have profound effects on the way we live. And who doesn't want to know everything there is to know about coffee?
Scientists have sequenced the genome of Coffea canephora, whose beans make what's known as robusta coffee. This type of coffee makes up 30 percent of the world's supply. The world drinks 2.25 billion cups of coffee in a day, so knowing the hereditary patterns of this plant could really change our lives.
For one thing, researchers can now use the findings from the study to determine why coffee plants have caffeine in the first place. Some prevailing theories are: a) that the plant can prevent animals from eating its leaves b) the caffeine from fallen leaves in the soil can prevent other plants from growing, thus limiting competition for resources, and c) caffeine may attract pollinators, according to Smithsonian.com. "It wouldn't surprise me if all three of these theories are correct to some degree," the study's co-author Victor Albert told Smithsonian.com.
The study also sheds light on how caffeine has evolved. The caffeine-building enzymes in the plant are a part of a group of enzymes called N-methyltransferases. The gene for an N-methyltransferase mutated, which changed how the enzyme worked. The plant copied this mutation and then those duplicates changed into other forms, The New York Times reports.
Scientists already knew that tea and cacao plants make caffeine, but their recent findings show that the cacao plant and the coffee plant took different paths in evolution to get to the same result, which is known as convergent evolution, according to The New York Times.
Successfully sequencing the coffee genome could also impact how farmers grow coffee plants. The goal would of course be to use these findings to better protect coffee from climate change and pests. There's also the possibility of genetically modifying the plant so that we can grow beans that are already decaffeinated, The Washington Post reports.
Albert also told Smithsonian.com that the researchers have been able to identify characteristics of coffee aroma and flavor, which could help make it tastier through selective breeding or engineering. The results of this study could also help researchers maximize the positive health effects of coffee and minimize the harm.
The possibility of a more delicious and healthier brew? It doesn't get much better than that.
