Using Non-Enzymatic Chemistry to Influence Microbial Metabolism

Stephen Wallace, Erica E. Schultz, Emily P Balskus

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

Abstract

The structural manipulation of small molecule metabolites occurs in all organisms and plays a fundamental role in essentially all biological processes. Despite an increasing interest in developing new, non-enzymatic chemical reactions capable of functioning in the presence of living organisms, the ability of such transformations to interface with cellular metabolism and influence biological function is a comparatively underexplored area of research. This review will discuss efforts to combine non-enzymatic chemistry with microbial metabolism. We will highlight recent and historical uses of non-biological reactions to study microbial growth and function, the use of non-enzymatic transformations to rescue auxotrophic microorganisms, and the combination of engineered microbial metabolism and biocompatible chemical reactions for organic synthesis.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)71-79
Number of pages9
JournalCurrent opinion in chemical biology
Volume25
Issue number7
Early online date8 Jan 2015
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Apr 2015
Externally publishedYes

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