Enzymes forming the C-C bond in the nicotine biosynthesis

Nicotine is a highly addictive substance, that is commonly consumed by smoking cigarettes. Although nicotine consumption is widespread through our society, the scientific community was not yet abled to fully unravel how plants produce this substance. There are different enzymes that are associated with the nicotine biosynthesis due to genetics, but the exact role and structure of these enzymes is elusive. We aim to produce these enzymes for a biochemical and structural characterization. On the one hand they are from high general interest because they are involved in the production of one of the most common legal drugs. On the other hand, they represent very valuable tools for the pharmaceutical industry, as one of these enzymes performs a C-C bond formation. This represents one of the most important reaction in organic chemistry. We aim to unravel how these enzymes can be employed as tools the pharmaceutical industry, where this kind of reaction are of high interest.