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Biosynthesis pp 132–174Cite as

Biochemical Mechanisms in the Biosynthesis of the Erythromycins

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Part of the book series: Antibiotics ((ANTIBIOTICS,volume 4))

Abstract

A number of reviews on macrolide antibiotics have appeared since they were first reviewed in this seriesVaněk and Majer1967: the subject was recently included in a more detailed account of macrolidesMasamune et al., 1977) as well as in an annual report on the subject of antibioticsCorcoran, 1977. A detailed discussion of the 16-membered group of macrolides appears in Chapter 8 of this volume. Of all the other possible models, the family of the erythromycins has been the subject of the most biochemical and enzymatic study, and far more knowledge is available about the detailed mechanisms involved in their biosynthesis than about any other macrolide type of antibiotic. Many natural products, including antibiotics, are made from the same (or similar) common intermediates of metabolism as are employed in the formation of the erythromycins, and the nature of the enzymatic reactions occurring in the formation of these precursors and in the synthesis of the complex natural product have implications for our understanding of biosynthesis beyond that of the model system (e.g., erythromycins) used for their elucidation.Therefore, this chapter analyzes in detail the present state of knowledge concerning the biosynthesis of the erythromycins (Fig. 1) and presents and discusses some general aspects of biosynthesis with this model system as an example.

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Authors
  1. John W. Corcoran
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biochemistry The Medical and Dental Schools, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, 60611, USA

    John W. Corcoran Ph.D.

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© 1981 Springer-Verlag Berlin · Heidelberg

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Corcoran, J.W. (1981). Biochemical Mechanisms in the Biosynthesis of the Erythromycins. In: Corcoran, J.W. (eds) Biosynthesis. Antibiotics, vol 4. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-67724-3_7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-67724-3_7

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-642-67726-7

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-642-67724-3

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