Sarah Heinicke

An auxiliary protein tunes reductase activity in alkaloid biosynthesis

The paper identifies an auxiliary protein, FoGS, that enhances the activity of geissoschizine synthase in producing alkaloid intermediates and controls product stereochemistry.

Discovery of a Plant Pictet-Spenglerase with R-Stereoselectivity

The paper identifies an STR ortholog in Pogonopus speciosus that produces the 3R epimer of strictosidine, revealing amino acids responsible for stereoselectivity and enabling engineered switches in stereoselectivity.

Conserved early steps of stemmadenine biosynthesis

The paper identifies and characterizes stemmadenine acetate pathway genes from Tabernanthe iboga, reconstitutes the biosynthesis in Nicotiana benthamiana, and identifies shunt products affecting pathway flux.

Single-cell metabolome and RNA-seq multiplexing on single plant cells

The paper demonstrates multiplexing single-cell RNA-seq and metabolomics on the same plant cell to directly correlate gene expression and metabolite levels.

Discovery of iridoid cyclase completes the iridoid pathway in asterids

The paper identifies an enzyme, ICYC, that catalyzes the cyclization of an enol intermediate in the iridoid biosynthesis pathway in asterids, completing the pathway and enabling metabolic engineering of iridoid compounds.

Independent evolution of ipecac alkaloid biosynthesis

This study shows that ipecac alkaloid biosynthesis evolved independently in two plant species using different monoterpene precursors and non-enzymatic reactions.

Single-cell mass spectrometry reveals heterogeneous triterpenic acid accumulation in apple callus-derived cells

This study uses single-cell mass spectrometry to reveal metabolic heterogeneity in apple callus cells and shows that abiotic stress increases triterpenic acid production.

It runs in the family: Discovery of enzymes in the oleuropein pathway in Olive (Olea europaea) by comparative transcriptomics

This paper identifies enzymes in the oleuropein biosynthesis pathway in olive using comparative transcriptomics and discovers novel genes involved in the pathway.

Streamlined screening platforms lead to the discovery of pachysiphine synthase from Tabernanthe iboga

The paper identifies two CYP450 enzymes in Tabernanthe iboga responsible for oxidative modifications of tabersonine scaffolds using a streamlined screening strategy in Nicotiana benthamiana.

Quantitative single cell mass spectrometry reveals the dynamics of plant natural product biosynthesis

The paper develops a method for single cell mass spectrometry to quantify natural products in plant cells, revealing biosynthetic dynamics not captured by scRNA-seq.