Editorial
Abstract
Commemorative issue of Natural Product Reports in honour of Professor D. John Faulkner.
It has been over a year since John's untimely passing. During that period, friends and collaborators have worked hard to complete the ten review articles you will find in this journal. In putting this special issue together we have tried to include authors who worked in John's research group at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, those who collaborated with him and those who worked in areas of research close to John's interests. In doing so, we have tried to highlight emerging and exciting new areas in the field of marine natural products, and have included several younger authors. We owe a debt of gratitude to all these authors for their willingness to contribute reviews at short notice, and for producing them in time to be included in a single issue. We are pleased to include John's last review article, on the natural products from Palauan marine organisms, completed by David Newman and Gordon Cragg. This issue also includes coverage of chemical ecology, symbiosis, biosynthesis and marine microorganisms.
It is hard to overestimate John's contribution to Natural Product Reports. Since starting in 1984, John has contributed 18 reviews on Marine Natural Products, and in addition produced two special highlight reviews. John estimated that the marine natural products review took nearly 300 hours to write each year, but he knew that his dedication was appreciated by the marine natural products community. Each year it has been the most highly cited article in Natural Product Reports and now also receives the greatest number of web-hits every year. The continuation of this review, by John Blunt, Brent Copp, Murray Munro, Peter Northcote and Michèle Prinsep, in its traditional spot at page one of the New Year issue, is continuing this success rate.
We hope that this special issue will form a suitable and lasting tribute to John's major contribution to Natural Product Reports, but more importantly to the field of marine natural products as a whole. John's contribution to this field, his mentorship and friendship will be greatly missed by all those who knew him and his work.
Marcel Jaspars
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