Potato origin traced to ancient hybridization

Scientists show the potato arose from ancient interbreeding between tomato and Etuberosum, reshaping how we understand its history.

The strange-but-true origin story of the humble potato

A team from the Natural History Museum in London sequenced the genomes of tomatoes, Etuberosum, and several potato strains. They found a balanced mix of genes from both parents in modern potatoes, indicating an ancient hybridization that created the potato lineage about 9 million years ago. This helps explain why some genetic signals point to tomatoes while others point to Etuberosum and suggests the potato lineage formed from a rare genetic event.

Domestication happened much later, around 6 to 7 thousand years ago near Lake Titicaca in the Andes, giving rise to the many potato varieties we eat today. Potatoes gained tubers, storage organs that helped them survive harsh mountain seasons. The study also notes that seeds could someday be used to breed potatoes for disease resistance and climate resilience, a potential shift in how farmers grow the crop.

This finding reframes how we read crop origins. It shows evolution as a messy, mixing process where lineages exchange genes to create something new and useful. Such a view encourages scientists to look for hybrid events as a common engine of diversity in crops.

For farmers and policymakers, the result raises both promise and questions. Seeds-based breeding could reduce disease risk and expand climate tolerance, but it also brings concerns about access, control over breeding, and who benefits from new varieties. The potato story is a reminder that agricultural progress arrives with trade-offs as well as opportunities.

Highlights

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