Themed collection Volatile Natural Products

Guest editor Stefan Schulz introduces this Natural Products Reports themed issue summarizing recent progress in volatile natural products.

Major advances have recently been made in understanding the biosynthesis and emission of floral volatiles, how their emission is shaped by abiotic and biotic factors, and which volatiles are involved in communicating with mutualists and parasites.

Analysis of volatile natural products.

This review highlights examples of synthetic organic chemistry used in the context of studying terpene-derived oxidation products in the atmosphere, with a focus on species produced from biogenic isoprene, pinene and caryophyllene.

Terpene volatile messengers are widespread among animals. New discoveries have been made about the role and independent evolution of pathways and enzymes in animal terpene biosynthesis, especially in the large group of insects.

Pheromones are generally produced by insects in submicrogram amounts which makes it difficult to elucidate their chemical structures. Synthetic approaches are therefore necessary for the unambiguous identification of these natural products.

Vegetative plant volatiles influence their environment, and vice versa. We review these dynamic interactions and identify frameworks that can help to explain volatile emission patterns and their biological functions.

Orchids are amongst the most diverse of all plant families, and produce a wide array of volatile compounds for pollinator attraction.

Butterflies use structurally highly diverse volatile compounds for communication, in addition to visual signals. These compounds originate from plants or a formed de novo especially by male butterflies that possess specific scent organs.