The parallel evolution of caffeine synthesis in yerba mate and coffee led scientists to suspect it plays a crucial role in plant survival, potentially functioning as a defense mechanism.

This binding suppresses TCS1 transcription, ultimately reducing caffeine synthesis. Furthermore, the microRNA miR1446a was found to play a pivotal role by directly cleaving CsbHLH1, which in turn ...

Ogita et al. constructed transgenic coffee plants in which expression of the gene encoding theobromine synthase (CaMXMT1), an enzyme involved in caffeine synthesis, was repressed by RNAi. They ...