Themed collection Fungal Natural Products

In this viewpoint highlights are drawn from a deep analysis of the multifaceted problem of aflatoxin biosynthesis, one of the most highly rearranged polyketide natural products known.

This viewpoint on biosynthesis of reduced polyketides in fungi traces evolution of the research area over more than 4 decades.

A personal summary of 40 years research in fungal polyketide biosynthesis is presented and developments in the field in the authors and other laboratories over that period are highlighted.

This article covers the recent literature on fungal type III polyketide synthases (PKSs).

An update on new developments in the field of ergot alkaloid biosynthesis since 2011 is highlighted.

This highlight discusses the secondary metabolite potential of the insect pathogens Metarhizium and Beauveria, including a bioinformatics analysis of secondary metabolite genes for which no products are yet identified. (Top picture is a mole cricket infected with Beauveria bassiana and the bottom picture is a wasp infected with Beauveria bassiana.)

This highlight summarizes some major breakthroughs in understanding the genes and regulation of fungal natural product synthesis and introduces the current state of knowledge on the spatial and temporal control of their biosynthetic machineries.

Molecular biology plays a vital role in contemporary natural product research. Responding to developments in whole genome sequencing, heterologous expression systems are being refined to accommodate whole fungal biosynthetic pathways.

This Highlight provides an overview of fungal siderophore metabolism and its role in physiology, cellular differentiation, interaction with other organisms, as well as potential clinical applications.

This review provides a summary of recent research advances in elucidating the biosynthesis of fungal indole alkaloids.

Fungi are prolific producers of a vast array of structurally diverse terpenoid natural products. Classes of terpenoids identified from Ascomycota and Basidiomycota include the sesquiterpenoids, the diterpenoids and the triterpenoids. This review will provide an overview of their known diversity and biosynthesis with a special emphasis on genomic resources available for pathway discovery.

Non-ribosomal peptide synthetases (NRPSs) are a primary modality for fungal peptidic natural product assembly and are responsible for some of the best known, most useful, and most destructive fungal metabolites.

This review focuses on new fungal natural products published from 2009 to 2013 highlighting the originality of the structures and their biological potential. Additionally progress in the use or the biological activity of known compounds or new derivatives is emphasized.

Oxidative rearrangements are key reactions during the biosyntheses of many secondary metabolites in fungi.

Nearly twenty distinct families of epidithiodioxopiperazine alkaloids have been isolated and characterized since the seminal discovery of gliotoxin in 1936. Herein, we discuss the occurrence, synthesis and biogenesis of these unusual fungal natural products.

The review discusses the reported sources, structures and biochemical studies aimed at the exploitation of the anticancer potential associated with fungal secondary metabolites.

Some endophytic fungi are capable of making a plethora of hydrocarbons having fuel potential. One of the major fuel-like products, among others, is cineole as produced by Nodulisporium spp. Methods for measuring hydrocarbon production by microorganisms are summarized as well as information on the products, genomes, and potential importance of these organisms as fuel producers.