Non-model Microbial Chassis: Next-Generation Platforms for Unlocking Bioactive Natural Products and Enzymes

Non-model microorganisms harbor an extraordinary, largely untapped diversity of bioactive natural products and enzymes with catalytic properties unmatched by conventional model hosts. While recent advances in genetic tools and systems-level approaches have begun to make non-model chassis more tractable, the translation of this tractability into concrete discoveries—new bioactive compounds, elucidated biosynthetic pathways, and functionally validated enzymes—remains the critical bottleneck for realizing their biotechnological value.This Research Topic centers on the discovery, biosynthetic elucidation, and functional/catalytic application of natural products and enzymes from non-model microbial chassis, rather than on the development of underlying genetic engineering platforms. We welcome studies spanning any non-model bacterial, fungal, or microalgal host, provided the core contribution addresses compound or enzyme discovery, pathway reconstruction, or downstream biotechnological application—complementing (rather than duplicating) parallel efforts focused on chassis tool development.We invite submissions addressing, but not limited to, the following themes:o Discovery of novel bioactive natural products from non-model microbial sources via genome mining, cryptic pathway activation, or metabolomics-guided screening.o Elucidation and heterologous reconstruction of biosynthetic pathways underlying newly discovered compounds.o Discovery, structural characterization, and mechanistic study of enzymes with novel or industrially valuable catalytic properties.o Pathway and enzyme engineering strategies aimed specifically at improving yield, selectivity, or catalytic efficiency of discovered compounds/enzymes (as opposed to general-purpose chassis toolkits).o Structure-activity relationships and bioactivity validation of natural products from underexplored microbial taxa.o Translational case studies applying newly discovered non-model-derived compounds or enzymes in pharmaceutical development, green chemistry, or industrial biocatalysis.o Comparative or evolutionary perspectives on why non-model taxa yield chemically or catalytically distinctive biosynthetic outputs. Topic editors: Haocheng He, Vinothkannan Ravichandran, Lin Zhong, Hanna Chen Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/80183/non-model-microbial-chassis-next-generation-platforms-for-unlocking-bioactive-natural-products-and-enzymes