WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — The National Science Foundation has deemed the mint family of plants, Lamiaceae, interesting and enigmatic enough to warrant $5.1 million worth of research into its unique genetic diversity and possible uses for humanity.

Natalia Dudareva, Purdue University distinguished professor of biochemistry, is one of the researchers who will take part in the examination of the mint family on an elemental level. Dudareva was chosen to conduct some of the research because of her work with primary and secondary metabolites (substances that contribute to the breakdown of food in living bodies).

"The goal of the proposal is to see what kind of different compounds the mint family produces," she explained. "There are actually over 50 species of mints and we are choosing 14 for deep analysis."

The mint research team is led by Robin Buell, a plant biologist from Michigan State University. "By bringing a set of other great scientists together, we can now unravel the complexities of chemistry that naturally evolved in these species," Buell said. "And, mints are cool."

Naturally, mints are "cool" because many use them to add flavor in cooking, for fragrance, as ornamentals, for herbal remedies and even to intoxicate pets – catnip is within the mint family. But for scientists, they inspire fascination in more of a mysterious sense.

"In general, very little is known about secondary metabolites because not all plants produce them," said Dudareva. "In plants that have them, they mainly function as defense."

One key the researchers believe they need to understand the mint family’s genetic composition is analysis of secondary metabolites called iridoids. Dudareva said iridoids exist in such small quantities in the plants and are so complex that scientists often do not even have the chemical substrates available to produce the necessary biochemical reactions for research. It takes a skilled biochemist to synthesize the compounds.

"First, we will identify compounds, then we will extract them from the plant tissues, analyze them and separate them," she said. "Right now, what we do know is that the mint family produces iridoids, which have a lot of medicinal aspects."

She said what the research team wants to know is how so many different compounds are produced by the same chemical precursor. No one knows exactly what kinds of medicinal or other effects iridoids could present if synthesized, but the research already done on the secondary metabolite suggests its properties include anti-cancer, anti-tumor, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antibacterial, anti-viral, cardiovascular protection, neuro-protection and blood sugar control benefits.

As part of the effort, researchers will visit a mint company in October because, in addition to the medicinal properties of some mints, some are important for flavor and as food additives such as mint oil and mint paper. Some mints are also culinary crops, like basil, oregano, rosemary and sage, which can be used in aromatherapy.

Although finding specific, new uses of members of the mint family for humans is a side benefit of the research, mint certainly has economic weight in global trade. In the United States alone, peppermint and spearmint oil sell for $20-$24 per pound and had a total estimated market value of $200 million in 2012.