Ageless beauty: SG’s national flower found to contain anti-ageing compound

Not only does the Vanda Miss Joaquim add a touch of colour and beauty to Singapore, but it was also recently discovered to contain an anti-ageing compound.

Also known as the Singapore orchid, Papilionanthe Miss Joaquim, was declared the country’s national flower in 1981 as a symbol of Singapore’s uniqueness and hybrid culture.

In a collaboration between SingHealth Duke-NUS Institute of Biodiversity Medicine (BD-MED) and the A*STAR’s Genome Institute of Singapore (GIS), scientists decoded the orchid’s entire genetic blueprint.

The results of the study were published in Communications Biology on Sept 15.

Through chemical profiling, the Vanda Miss Joaquim was shown to contain natural products such as flavonols and anthocyanins, which are notable for their antioxidant properties and distinctive colour pattern, A*STAR said in a statement on Nov 1.

“The orchid was also found to contain vandaterosides, a bioactive compound capable of slowing the skin-ageing process which was previously discovered in Papilionanthe Teres, the seed parent of VMJ,” it added. 

Prof Teh Bin Tean, Director of SingHealth Duke-NUS BD-MED, and Senior Group Leader of the Laboratory of Biodiversity Genomics at A*STAR’s GIS underlined the significance of the decoding of the orchid’s genetic blueprint.

He said that understanding the Vanda Miss Joaquim’s genetic makeup could “help us better understand how to enhance genomic resources and pave the way for future research in gene and metabolite engineering.”

Furthermore, cracking the genetic code of other flora species would also allow scientists “to uncover naturally occurring bioactive compounds, which could be used for healthcare purposes and to understand, prevent and fight diseases.”

“Singapore’s biodiversity is well represented, with over 4,000 species of native flora which are threatened in the face of global climate irregularities and issues. Thanks to advancing sequencing technology, we are able to conserve the genomes of flora by preserving the genetic code through sequencing. We are tremendously honoured to start our journey studying Singapore’s plant biodiversity with our national flower,” said Prof Patrick Tan, the Executive Director of GIS. /TISG

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