Role of Acetate in Biosynthesis

Abstract

The role of acetate in the biosynthesis of a large number of antibiotics and other natural products is discussed. Included are simple substances apparently derived from acetate by molecular rearrangements, such as patulin and the fungal tropolone acids, puberlonic and stipitatic acids. The origin of more complex antibiotics such as oxytetracycline is considered, as well as the genesis of depsidones (such as nidulin) from lichens and fungi. The involvement of acetate in the biosynthesis of various classes of alkaloids, such as the indoles, strychnine, and ajmaline, is also discussed. More recent developments in the biochemical details of these processes, such as the role of malonate, is particularly stressed.