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Scientists have finally cracked the genetic code of the sweet potato, one of the world’s most important staple crops, revealing a genome more complex than almost any other food plant.Unlike humans, who inherit two sets of chromosomes, sweet potatoes carry six—a condition called hexaploidy—which has made its DNA extremely difficult to interpret. A team has now successfully assembled the first fully resolved genome of the African variety ‘Tanzania,’ widely valued for its disease resistance and high yield.Their research shows that the sweet potato’s DNA is a tangled mosaic of contributions from several wild ancestors. Some genetic sequences trace back to Ipomoea aequatoriensis in Ecuador, while others resemble a Central American relative, though parts of its ancestry remain unknown. This genetic interweaving makes sweet potato a “segmental allopolyploid”—a hybrid that gained resilience and adaptability through its complex origins.Understanding this genetic architecture is a breakthrough for crop science. With this high-resolution map, breeders can now target genes that influence yield, nutrition, and resilience to drought and pests, accelerating the development of improved varieties.RESEARCH PAPER 📄Shan Wu et al, “Phased chromosome-level assembly provides insight into the genome architecture of hexaploid sweetpotato.” Nature Plants (2025)