The genus Pandanus (Pandanaceae) is widely distributed in the tropical and subtropical regions. With about 700 species worldwide, three Pandanus species (P. amaryllifolius, P. utilis, and P. dubius) have been investigated and found to contain new alkaloids possessing a pyrrolidinyl-α,β-unsaturated
Lactobacillus plantarum PA18, a strain originally isolated from the leaves of Pandanus amaryllifolius, contains a pR18 plasmid. The pR18 plasmid is a 3211bp circular molecule with a G+C content of 35.8%. Nucleotide sequence analysis revealed two putative open reading frames, ORF1 and ORF2, in which