Engineering of modular polyketide synthases to produce novel polyketides

Polyketides are important natural products produced by Actinomycetes and other organisms via the polymerization of coenzyme A-activated carboxylic acids. Modular polyketide synthases are large multifunctional enzymes that direct the biosynthetic process using a dedicated 'module' for each polymerization reaction, which specifies the unit to be polymerized, its oxidation state and stereochemistry. Over the past two years proof-of-principle has been demonstrated for technologies that modify or exchange modules to create hybrid enzymes that catalyze the biosynthesis of novel polyketides.