Abstract
B-thujaplicin, also referred to as hinokitiol, is a tropolone monoterpenoid with antimicrobial and antifungal properties. It is responsible for the decay resistance of heartwood of trees of the Cupressaceae. It is also used as an additive to toothpaste, cosmetics, and foods in Japan and has scavenging activity against reactive oxygen species and cytotoxic activity against several cancer cells lines. Here, Cupressus dupreziana callus cultures were developed as an experimental system to isolate thujaplicin biosynthetic genes. A homology-based PCR cloning strategy was employed in an attempt to isolate a monoterpene synthase gene involved in B -thujaplicin biosynthesis.