Study Traces Potato to 8-9 Million-Year Hybrid of Tomato and Etuberosum Ancestors
Updated
Updated · spacedaily.com · Jul 1
Study Traces Potato to 8-9 Million-Year Hybrid of Tomato and Etuberosum Ancestors
2 articles · Updated · spacedaily.com · Jul 1
Summary
Genome analysis published in Cell found the entire potato lineage arose from a single hybridization event 8-9 million years ago between ancestors of the tomato and Etuberosum lineages in South America.
High-quality sequences across Petota, Tomato and Etuberosum resolved a century-old classification dispute by showing potato did not fit a single evolutionary tree because it was born from ancient cross-lineage mixing.
Two key genes explain how the tuber emerged: tomato contributed SP6A, the switch that starts tuber formation, while Etuberosum contributed IT1, which directs underground stems to become tubers.
That combination created a developmental system neither parent possessed, helping a viable hybrid lineage diversify into more than 100 potato species and later into a crop domesticated about 7,000 years ago near Lake Titicaca.
The finding could aid breeding by pointing researchers to wild relatives—including three surviving Etuberosum species—as sources of disease resistance, climate tolerance and nutritional traits.
If a tomato ancestor helped create the potato, what other 'impossible' hybrid crops could we engineer to feed the future?
How did the potato's 'parents,' separated by 14 million years, overcome the biological rules to create a fertile new species?
The potato changed human DNA to improve digestion. What other foods might be quietly reshaping our genes right now?
Nine Million Years in the Making: How Ancient Hybridization Created the Modern Potato and Transformed Global Agriculture
Overview
A major international study published in 2025 solved the mystery of the potato’s origins by tracing it back to a rare natural hybridization event about 9 million years ago in South America. Scientists discovered that the modern potato is the result of a genetic fusion between wild tomato ancestors and a unique potato-like plant called Etuberosum. This ancient hybridization was the key step that led to the evolution of the tuber, allowing potatoes to store energy underground. This efficient energy storage made potatoes highly productive and helped them become a vital global food crop.