Mycology seeks fungal biosynthesis papers for special collection

The journal Mycology is inviting researchers to submit manuscripts for a special article collection on fungal secondary metabolism and biosynthesis. The collection is intended for research concerning the production of natural products by fungi, including the discovery of secondary metabolites from mushrooms and wood-decaying fungi, the biosynthetic pathways responsible for their formation, and the enzymes involved in constructing these compounds. This is a research call rather than a report of a single experiment or clinical study, and every manuscript submitted to the collection will undergo full peer review. Prospective authors are advised to review the journal’s scope and author submission instructions before submitting their work.

Three guest advisors will guide the collection. Hideaki Oikawa is described as a leader in bioorganic chemistry and the biosynthesis of natural products, with current work focused on genome mining for novel fungal natural products and the reaction mechanisms of enzymes that form carbon–carbon bonds during biosynthesis. His stated aim is to provide fundamental insight into the chemical strategies found in nature and to inspire new approaches in synthetic biology. Chengwei Liu of Northeast Forestry University focuses on natural-product biosynthesis and synthetic biology, particularly the search for secondary metabolites from macrofungi such as mushrooms and wood-decaying fungi. Jianzhao Qi, an associate professor at the Edible Fungi Research Center at Northwest A&F University, works on natural-product formation in large fungi, including the discovery of compounds with anti-tumor and other useful activities from medicinal and edible mushrooms.

The announcement identifies several technical approaches represented by the guest advisors. Liu’s group uses heterologous expression and CRISPR genome editing to investigate complex biosynthetic pathways and activate silent gene clusters. Oikawa’s work combines genome mining with mechanistic analysis of carbon–carbon bond-forming enzymes, while Qi’s group studies the biological pathways used by fungi to produce natural products. Qi also applies synthetic biology and green manufacturing techniques to the production of complex active ingredients. The announcement presents these methods as part of broader research programs for finding bioactive compounds, understanding how fungi make them, and creating production systems. It does not report particular compounds, experimental systems, yields, biological measurements or completed clinical studies for the collection, so the cited activities and potential applications should be understood as the aims of the participating researchers rather than demonstrated outcomes from a shared collection study.

To submit to the collection, authors must answer “yes” to the question asking whether they are submitting a paper for a specific special issue or article collection, then select “Fungal secondary metabolism and biosynthesis” from the corresponding drop-down menu. Questions about the collection and discount codes should be directed to Changluan Zhou at Taylor & Francis. The release also states that the guest advisors declare no conflict of interest regarding the work. By bringing together expertise in fungal genome mining, natural-product pathways, enzyme mechanisms, gene-cluster activation, heterologous expression, genome editing, synthetic biology and green manufacturing, the call is designed to solicit papers across complementary stages of fungal secondary-metabolite research. It does not imply that the collection has already generated discoveries, and the announcement’s statements about pharmaceutical, agricultural, drug-development and functional-food applications describe potential uses associated with the advisors’ research rather than verified clinical benefits or commercial outcomes.

Subject of Research: A manuscript call for research on fungal secondary metabolism and natural-product biosynthesis.

Article Title: Submit a manuscript to the journal Mycology for an article collection on fungal secondary metabolism and biosynthesis

Article References: Submit a manuscript to the journal Mycology for an article collection on fungal secondary metabolism and biosynthesis. Original publication (Bibliographic details unavailable.)

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Keywords: fungal biology, secondary metabolism, natural products, biosynthesis, genome mining, CRISPR editing, heterologous expression, synthetic biology, mushrooms, bioactive compounds, Submit, manuscript