​生物有機與酵素化學實驗室 Bio-organic and Enzyme Chemistry Laboratory

Natural products represent the most structurally diverse class of naturally occurring small molecules and have long served as an invaluable source of therapeutic agents for human diseases. Organisms from all kingdoms of life, including bacteria, fungi, plants, and animals, produce an immense array of complex and bioactive compounds. Many of these natural products have been successfully developed into medicines with antibacterial, antiviral, anticancer, and cholesterol-lowering properties. However, the increasing emergence of pathogens resistant to clinically used antibiotics poses a critical global health threat. To address this challenge, it is essential to discover new bioactive natural products and develop improved drug derivatives through both chemical and biological approaches. 
Our research group focuses on the development of new antibiotics. We integrate biochemistry, natural product chemistry, enzymology, structural biology, and synthetic biology to investigate natural product biosynthetic pathways and enzymatic mechanisms. By elucidating the molecular basis of biosynthesis and resistance, we aim to harness and reprogram these pathways through genome mining, enzyme engineering, and combinatorial biosynthesis to generate new natural product derivatives with enhanced therapeutic potential. Ultimately, our goal is to expand the chemical diversity of natural compounds and contribute to the development of the next generation of antimicrobial agents.
 
天然產物是自然界中結構最為多樣化的小分子化合物，一直以來都是人類藥物開發的重要來源。這些化合物來自細菌、真菌、植物與動物等多樣生物體，展現出豐富的化學結構與生理活性。其中許多天然產物已成功發展為臨床藥物，如抗菌、抗病毒、抗癌以及降血脂藥物等。
然而，隨著多重抗藥性病原菌的出現，現有抗生素的療效正逐漸降低，這也使得尋找新型天然產物或開發具改良藥效的衍生物成為迫切的議題。
本研究團隊致力於新型抗生素與具生物活性天然產物的發現與開發。我們的研究結合生物化學、天然產物化學、酵素學、結構生物學與合成生物學等多元領域，探討天然產物的生合成途徑及其酵素反應機制，並深入了解抗性機制的分子基礎。透過基因體挖掘、酵素工程及組合生物學等策略，我們嘗試延伸天然產物的生合成系統，以創造具有新穎結構與活性的分子。最終目標是拓展天然化合物的化學多樣性，發掘具臨床潛力的新一代抗生素。