Understanding the crucial interactions between Cytochrome P450s and non-ribosomal peptide synthetases during glycopeptide antibiotic biosynthesis

The importance of Cytochrome P450-catalyzed modifications of natural products produced by non-ribosomal peptide synthetase machineries is most apparent during glycopeptide antibiotic biosynthesis: specifically, the formation of essential amino acid side chains crosslinks in the peptide backbone of these clinically relevant antibiotics. These cyclization reactions take place whilst the peptide substrate remains bound to the non-ribosomal peptide synthetase in a process mediated by a conserved domain of previously unknown function - the X-domain. This review addresses recent advances in understanding P450 recruitment to non-ribosomal peptide synthetase-bound substrates and highlights the importance of both carrier proteins and the X-domain in different P450-catalyzed reactions.