Poppy, California

The isolation of the cDNAs encoding the enzymes involved in diverse isoquinoline alkaloid formation in plants and microorganisms allowed the first metabolic engineering routes to be developed and paved the way for new ways of future production of isoquinoline alkaloids. For instance, transgenic opium poppy plants were created in which codeinone reductase was suppressed by RNAi, resulting in the substitution of morphine synthesis with the non-narcotic precursor reticuline [110]. In a similar approach, RNAi suppression or overexpression of salutaridinol 1-0-acetyltransferase in opium poppy led to accumulation of salutaridine or increase of morphine, codeine and thebaine content [111], suppression of the BBE led to accumulation of berberine in California poppy cells [112],... 

I don t suppose many love yellow star thistle except perhaps the bees attracted by its bright saffron-colored flowers or the honey lovers addicted to the bees sweet product. Most find this weed a nuisance and there is no easy way to remove it. It has taken me many years of burning, mowing, hoeing and replanting with perennial grasses, to restore the old pasture. Today it is full of purple needlegrass, blue wildrye, and California poppies, native species that used to blanket the valley before human activity and invasive weeds all but obliterated them. 

CALIFORNIA POPPY -- Eschscholtzia californica. Family Papaveraceae (Poppy family). 

HAUSCHILD, K., PAULI, H.H., KUTCHAN, T.M., Isolation and analysis of a gene bbel encoding the berberine bridge enzyme from the California poppy Eschscholzia califomica. Plant Mol. Biol., 1998,36,473-478. 

PARK, S.-U., YU, M., FACCHINI, P.J., Antisense RNA-mediated suppression of benzophenanthridine alkaloid biosynthesis in transgenic cell cultures of California poppy. Plant Physiol., 2002,128, 696-706. 

Whilst extensive information is available on the occurrence of cyanogenic glucosides in plants, little is known about the presence of these compounds in cell and tissue cultures. Suspension cultures of the California poppy (E. cal-ifornica) contain several cyanogenic compounds (Hosel et al, 1985). However, the cyanogenic glucosides present in cell cultures of this plant are different from triglochinin and taxiphyllin found in intact Eschscholtzia plants and are still unknown. 

Dendromecon (tree poppy) Eschscholzia (California poppy) Glaucium (horn poppy)... 

Cultural and climatic conditions have only a moderate effect on the alkaloid content of plants. It is known that the amount of alkaloids in opium varies with the source, but some of this variation is undoubtedly due to varietal differences in the poppies in question. A lone example, frequently cited to illustrate the catastrophic effect of soil or climatic conditions upon the type of alkaloid elaborated, is the California poppy Eschscholtzia calif arnica Cham.). Records show that when this plant was grown in Brittany it yielded but a single base, ionidine, which, if correctly characterized, differed from those bases characteristic of the plant when it is grown in other habitats. In a systematic study of the true species and of cultivated varieties grown both in very rich and very poor soils, the author (unpublished results) failed to detect the presence of ionidine although several new alkaloids were found. 

California poppy Eschschotaa catifomica 3 Potentially mildly narcotic Sanguinaria... 

Information on the safety of California poppy in pregnancy and lactation is limited. One contemporary herbal text indicates that California poppy should not be used during pregnancy (Moore 2003). Based on this information, use during pregnancy is not recommended except under the supervision of a qualified healthcare practitioner. 

An aqueous extract of California poppy inhibited dopamine P hydroxylase and monoamine oxidase (MAO-B) (Kleber et al. 1995). 

An ethanol extract of California poppy was shown to bind to the serotonin B-HTj and B-HTy receptors at concentrations of 100 pg/ml (Gafner et al. 2006). 

The LD50 of orally and intraperitoneally administered aque-ous-ethanolic extract of California poppy in mice could not be determined at doses up to 5 g/kg (Rolland et al. 2001). 

Park SU, Facchini PJ. Agrobacterium rhizogenes-mediated transformation of opium poppy, Papaver somniferum L., and California poppy, Eschscholzia cahfomica Cham., root cultures. J Exp Bot 2000 51(347) 1005-16. 

Fujii, N., Inui, T., Iwasa, K., Morishige, T., and Sato, F. (2007) Knockdown of berberine bridge enzyme by RNAi accumulates (S)-reticuline and activates a silent pathway in cultured California poppy cells. Transgenic Res., 16, 363-375. 

Much of the earlier work on the occurrence and biosynthesis of isoprene was summarized and discussed by Loomis and Croteau (1973). Earlier work indicated that isoprene was produced by a large number of woody species (Rasmussen, 1970,1978), and isoprene production was thought to occur only in woody species. However, R. A. Rasmussen (personal communication, 1979) has recently shown isoprene emission by several species of ferns and by two herbaceous dicot species—velvet bean Stizolobium sp.) and California poppy (Eschscholtzia californica). Bracken fern appears to be an especially active producer of isoprene. 

Park, S.-U., Yu, M. and Facchini, P.J. (2003) Modulation of berberine bridge enzyme levels in transgenic root cultures of California poppy alters the accumulation of benzophenanthridine alkaloids. Plant Mol Biol, 51, 153-164. 

The BBE from Eschscholzia califomica (California poppy) is the best-characterized member of this enzyme class due to the availability of an efficient heterologous expression system using Pichia pastoris [158,159]. Moreover, its biochemical properties, structure, and reaction mechanism were thoroughly investigated [160-162]. In addition, the potential of BBE was investigated for biocatalytic applications such as the kinetic resolution of different racemic nonnatural benzylisoquinolines [16,163,164]. 

SCHEME 36.31. Enzymatic kinetic resolutions by means of the oxidative C-C intramolecular coupling catalyzed by berberine bridge enzyme (BBE) of Eschscholzia californica (California poppy). Catalase is normally added to eliminate the formed hydrogen peroxide, which leads to enzyme denaturation. ... 

California poppy Eschscholtzia califomica Alkaloids glucosides Smoke as marihuana substitute Mild euphoriant... 

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