The tomato plant (Solanum lycopersicum) is a domesticated plant belonging to the nightshade family (Solanaceae). It originates from South America, but is cultivated all around the world as an important food crop. Along with its nutritional value, it produces a number of important secondary metabolites. As with many members of the nightshade family, the leaves of tomato plants contain small amounts of the alkaloids tomatine and solanine, which are toxic and have pesticidal properties. The tomato genome is diploid with an approximate size of 900 Mb.
Genome release:
https://www.nature.com/articles/nature11119
Tomato Genome Consortium, 2012. The tomato genome sequence provides insights into fleshy fruit evolution. Nature, 485(7400), p.635.
Content written by Galyna Vakulenko Summer Intern 2018
