*Review Erythroxylum* **in Focus: An Interdisciplinary Review of an Overlooked Genus**

**David A. Restrepo 1,**†**, Ernesto Saenz 2,**†**, Orlando Adolfo Jara-Muñoz 3, Iván F. Calixto-Botía 4, Sioly Rodríguez-Suárez 1, Pablo Zuleta 1, Benjamin G. Chavez 5, Juan A. Sanchez 1,2 and John C. D'Auria 5,\***


Academic Editor: John C. D'Auria. Received: 2 September 2019; Accepted: 18 October 2019; Published: 21 October 2019

**Abstract:** The genus *Erythroxylum* contains species used by indigenous people of South America long before the domestication of plants. Two species, *E. coca* and *E. novogranatense,* have been utilized for thousands of years specifically for their tropane alkaloid content. While abuse of the narcotic cocaine has impacted society on many levels, these species and their wild relatives contain untapped resources for the benefit of mankind in the form of foods, pharmaceuticals, phytotherapeutic products, and other high-value plant-derived metabolites. In this review, we describe the current state of knowledge of members within the genus and the recent advances in the realm of molecular biology and biochemistry.

**Keywords:** Erythroxylaceae; *Erythroxylum coca*; next generation sequencing; traditional medicine; bioprospecting; tropane
