Where chemistry meets biology: the chemoenzymatic synthesis of nonribosomal peptides and polyketides

Intensive studies on modular biosynthetic assembly line machinery have provided researchers with a profound knowledge of how nonribosomal peptides and polyketides used in different therapeutic areas are produced in nature. This has opened the door for projects aiming to manipulate the assembly of these small molecules by directed and combinatorial approaches to produce novel compounds both in vivo and in vitro. Here, we highlight a set of recent chemoenzymatic attempts towards the synthesis of nonribosomal peptides and polyketides that aim to generate these structurally demanding compounds through the combined utilization of synthetic chemical tools and recombinant natural product metabolic enzymes.