Natural products continue to serve as sources for the development of new medicines. There is currently a revival of interest in the discovery of bioactive compounds with new chemical structures from natural sources, largely due to the fact that synthetic libraries have not yielded the expected number of developmental candidates in the pharmaceutical industry during the last decade. In addition, the emergence of clinically relevant pathogens that are becoming increasingly resistant to currently used medicines strengthens the notion that natural product research is urgently required. Considering the fact that almost 10% of bioactive compounds are of microbial origin, and that marine microorganisms are relatively poorly studied compared to their terrestrial relatives, marine microorganisms are regarded as the most potential-laden resource for drug discovery.
In this Research Topic we welcome reviews and original research articles aimed at improving the knowledge and understanding of marine natural products of microbial origin. More specifically, this Research Topic welcomes studies focused on:
– Isolation, structural elucidation and biological potential of secondary metabolites from marine microorganisms.
– Investigations regarding methodologies for extraction, isolation, and identification. Analysis of the limitations and benefits of these methodologies are also welcome.
– Structure-activity relationships that can help in understanding the bioactivity of different compounds. These results should be discussed with an eye toward the mechanisms of the compounds' activities, in order to promote the identification of novel candidates for drug development.
– Research performed on the basis of in vitro, in vivo, or clinical evaluations on the major pharmacological activities of metabolites from different marine microorganisms.
– New concepts to induce silent biogenetic gene clusters, thereby expanding the chemical diversity of fungal strains.
– Future trends and utilization of this knowledge.
Natural products continue to serve as sources for the development of new medicines. There is currently a revival of interest in the discovery of bioactive compounds with new chemical structures from natural sources, largely due to the fact that synthetic libraries have not yielded the expected number of developmental candidates in the pharmaceutical industry during the last decade. In addition, the emergence of clinically relevant pathogens that are becoming increasingly resistant to currently used medicines strengthens the notion that natural product research is urgently required. Considering the fact that almost 10% of bioactive compounds are of microbial origin, and that marine microorganisms are relatively poorly studied compared to their terrestrial relatives, marine microorganisms are regarded as the most potential-laden resource for drug discovery.
In this Research Topic we welcome reviews and original research articles aimed at improving the knowledge and understanding of marine natural products of microbial origin. More specifically, this Research Topic welcomes studies focused on:
– Isolation, structural elucidation and biological potential of secondary metabolites from marine microorganisms.
– Investigations regarding methodologies for extraction, isolation, and identification. Analysis of the limitations and benefits of these methodologies are also welcome.
– Structure-activity relationships that can help in understanding the bioactivity of different compounds. These results should be discussed with an eye toward the mechanisms of the compounds' activities, in order to promote the identification of novel candidates for drug development.
– Research performed on the basis of in vitro, in vivo, or clinical evaluations on the major pharmacological activities of metabolites from different marine microorganisms.
– New concepts to induce silent biogenetic gene clusters, thereby expanding the chemical diversity of fungal strains.
– Future trends and utilization of this knowledge.
