?url_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Adc&rft.relation=http%3A%2F%2Fd-scholarship-dev.library.pitt.edu%2F24587%2F&rft.title=MS+Thesis+(ETD)+Dan+Kwak&rft.creator=Kwak%2C+Daniel+H&rft.description=Microbial+secondary+metabolites+are+physiologically+significant%2C+exhibiting+auxiliary+functions+for+the+producer+and+as+scaffolds+in+the+developments+of+new+medicines.+Advancements+in+genome+sequencing+technologies+have+enabled+researchers+to+access+unprecedented+amounts+of+genomic+data+that+can+be+used+to+discover+the+enzymatic+machinery+necessary+to+discover+novel+and+biologically-active+molecules.+This+approach+has+been+termed+%E2%80%9Cgenome+mining.%E2%80%9D+In+both+of+the+investigations+presented+herein%2C+genome+mining+was+utilized+to+discover+and+characterize+biosynthetic+pathways+of+novel+molecules.+The+findings+in+one+study+utilize+this+approach+to+discover+a+small+molecule+virulence+factor+from+the+opportunistic+human+pathogen+Acinetobacter+baumannii.+This+virulence+factor+has+been+found+to+be+associated+with+a+number+of+clinically+significant+phenotypes%2C+and+these+findings+suggest+that+this+can+be+a+target+in+the+developments+of+next+generation+antibiotics.+In+another+study%2C+this+approach+was+implemented+to+discover+and+characterize+the+biosynthetic+pathway+of+anticancer+compound+hapalosin+from+the+cyanobacterial+species+Hapalosiphon+welwitschii.+Cloning+and+expression+of+this+biosynthetic+pathway+in+the+surrogate+host+Escherichia+coli+enabled+its+genetic+characterization+as+well+as+the+generation+of+a+small+combinatorial+library+consisting+of+analogs+incorporating+natural+and+unnatural+substrates.+Collectively%2C+these+investigations+demonstrate+the+utility+of+genome+mining+to+characterize+novel+molecules+important+in+pathogenesis+or+in+the+biosynthesis+of+clinically-significant+compounds.&rft.date=2015-06-08&rft.type=University+of+Pittsburgh+ETD&rft.type=PeerReviewed&rft.format=application%2Fpdf&rft.language=en&rft.identifier=http%3A%2F%2Fd-scholarship-dev.library.pitt.edu%2F24587%2F4%2FMS_Thesis_%2528ETD%2529_Dan_Kwak.pdf&rft.identifier=++Kwak%2C+Daniel+H++(2015)+MS+Thesis+(ETD)+Dan+Kwak.++Master's+Thesis%2C+University+of+Pittsburgh.++++(Unpublished)++