Fungal Ribosomally Synthesised and Post-translationally Modified Peptides ---- EXTERNALLY LED DP20

Fungi produce an array of molecules called secondary metabolites (SMs) that impact on everyday life (e.g.penicillin). This project aims to investigate a new class of fungal peptide SMs called RiPPs which are structurallyunique from existing molecules and offer the exciting prospect of harbouring new and novel biological activities.This project expects to discover the mechanisms of RiPP synthesis and their biological roles in plant pathogenicfungi, and uncover and engineer novel RiPPs with desired bioactivities. The expected outcome from this projectwill be a seminal advance in fungal SM biology which should provide significant benefits through the generation of exciting new lead molecules for the agricultural and medical industries.