Caatinga: molecular identity studies

Historically, natural products have often been used as sources of new drugs, particularly in the case of alkaloids. The study of plants is currently under transformation, with the increasing availability of molecular and bioinformatics tools that help understand their physiology and realize their potential benefits as sources of new bioactive chemical entities with pharmaceutical interest. Taking advantage of these technologies is important, since the careful study of biosynthetic routes of the main natural products and the assessment of predictive value in silico can bring improved success for bioprospection. This project aims at producing and articulating high impact scientific knowledge from Caatinga plants, about their chemical and molecular features, through omic strategies in a pioneering fashion. The study will focus on obtaining proteome, transcriptome, and metabolome data from tree medicinal native plants from Brazil, widespread in Caatinga, as well as to carry out the bioprospection of bioactive alkaloids using predictive analysis in silico. The integrative and transdisciplinary correlation of the data outcomes can contribute to a better understanding of secondary metabolism in plants in the semiarid/xeric environmental conditions, such as the Caatinga, in comparison to common tropical biomes, such as the Atlantic Forest. Besides, upon its completion, this project is expected to contribute to the characterization of model plants from Brazilian biomes for molecular studies, thereby creating a platform for plant studies in little known biomes with unique features.