Modular polyketide synthases biosynthesise natural products through successive Claisen-type condensations, where one module is responsible for one round of chain extension. This review describes recent findings where this rule of co-linearity is broken, either by one module being bypassed (skipping) or through one module being used for multiple chain extension events (stuttering).

objective(s): the enzymatic activity of fungi has recently inspired the scientists with re-explore the fungi as potential biofactories rather than the causing agents of humans and plants infections. in very recent years, fungi are considered as worthy, applicable and available candidates for synthesis of smaller gold, silver and other nano-sized particles.  materials and methods: a standard str...

The genetics and biochemistry of tryptophan metabolism in the bread mold, Neurospora cras&a, have received considerable experimental attention during the past 20 years. By now, an impressive body of information has accumulated to the extent that the intimate details of the biosynthesise and degradation'-' of tryptophan in Neurospora are well known and also to the extent that the genetics of thi...

Currently, the Annonaceae family is characterised by the production of acetogenins (ACGs), and also by the biosynthesis of alkaloids, primarily benzylisoquinolines derived from tyrosine. The objective of this study was to confirm the presence of alkaloids and acetogenins in the idioblasts of the endosperm and the embryonic axis of A. macroprophyllata seeds in germination. The Dragendorff, Dittm...

Pigments and melanins of fungal spores have been investigated for decades, revealing important roles in the survival of the fungus in hostile environments. The key genes and the encoded enzymes for pigment and melanin biosynthesis have recently been found in Ascomycota, including Aspergillus spp. In Aspergillus terreus, the pigmentation has remained mysterious with only one class of melanin bio...

Fish vary in the ability to biosynthesise n-3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LC-PUFA), with marine fish such as cod being inefficient in comparison to freshwater and salmonid fish. We investigated differences in the gene promoters of Delta6 fatty acyl desaturase (Delta6 FAD), a critical enzyme in LC-PUFA biosynthesis, in cod and salmon. Progressive deletions and targeted mutations of t...

Nitro groups are often associated with synthetically manufactured compounds such as medicines and explosives, rarely natural products. Loquat emits a nitro compound, (2-nitroethyl)benzene, flower scent. The compound exhibits fungistatic activity is biosynthesised from l-phenylalanine via (E/Z)-phenylacetaldoxime. Although aldoxime-producing CYP79s have been intensively studied, it unclear what ...

Marine fish species exhibit low capacity to biosynthesise highly unsaturated fatty acid (HUFA) in comparison to strict freshwater and anadromous species. It is admitted that the Delta(6) desaturase (FADS2) is a key enzyme in the HUFA biosynthetic pathway. We investigated by quantitative PCR the relative amounts of FADS2 mRNA in European sea bass (Dicentrarchus labrax) in comparison with a salmo...

Nitric oxide is continually synthesised in the respiratory epithelium and is upregulated in response to infection or inflammation. Primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD) is characterised by recurrent sinopulmonary infections due to impaired mucociliary clearance. Despite chronic infections, nasal nitric oxide in such patients is markedly reduced and is used as a screening test for this condition. The...

Infertility is the failure of a couple to engender after endeavouring at least one full year of unprotected intercourse. It has been reported that reactive oxygen species contributed to pathogenesis of various disease. To inactivate ROS cells biosynthesise several antioxidant enzymes, one of them is catalase which contributes H2 O2 to H2 O and O2 . This study set out to delineate the associatio...