A step forward in our understanding of how plants produce alkaloids could herald new pharmaceuticals. Biologists from the University of York (UK) have discovered enzymes that catalyze the biosynthesis ...

Alkaloid-derived pharmaceuticals are commonly semisynthesized from plant-extracted starting materials, which often limits their availability and final price. Recent advances in synthetic biology have ...

Scorpion venom packs more than a painful sting. It’s also chock full of novel bioactive compounds—most of them polypeptides—that intrigue scientists. For the first time, researchers have identified an ...

Plants are undeniably one of nature's most promising sources of new medicines, with monoterpenoid indole alkaloids (MIAs) being a great example. Some intricate compounds are built from multiple-linked ...

Alkaloids constitute a diverse class of nitrogen‐containing natural products renowned for their wide spectrum of biological activities, from analgesic and anti‐inflammatory effects to potent ...