[2][3] The genome of Lithospermum erythrorhizon has been sequenced and has facilitated the discovery of a putative retrotransposition-derived duplication event that produced a 4-hydroxybenzoate geranyltransferase gene involved in alkannin biosynthesis.

[5][6] Before the introduction of synthetic dyes to Meiji period Japan, the roots were commonly used as a dyestuff for luxury textiles, typically high-end kimono and obi.

While this occurs, the silk is pre-mordanted [...] the mordanting process involves repeated immersion of the cloth or yarn in the alum bath and drying over a two- or three-month period.

The silk is then repeatedly immersed in the bath, aired to allow more oxygen to penetrate the cloth and then steeped in the dye until the desired color is achieved.

[10] The dyes made from its root also had other names, such as shikon (紫根),[11] but all of them were difficult to work with because of their requirement for an alum-rich mordant and the resulting colors' extreme vulnerability to photobleaching.