Abstract
The question of the origins of secondary metabolites has long intrigued chemists and biochemists. The existence of bioactive compounds in plants and other natural sources has been known for millennia. Amongst the approximately 1000 plant-derived substances that were used, some are still in use today for the treatment of ailments, ranging from coughs and colds to parasitic infections and inflammation. With the advent of novel screening systems related to the explosion of genetic information now becoming available, it will be necessary to rapidly identify novel lead structures. It is believed that a very significant proportion of these will continue to be natural product derived. Due to ease of access, plant-derived materials have been in the majority as far as sources are concerned. Now, with the advent of genetic techniques that permit the isolation and expression of biosynthetic cassettes, microbes and their marine invertebrate hosts may well be the new frontier for natural products.
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