Abstract
The question that can be asked about all natural products, including naturally occurring halogenated compounds, is “Why do organisms produce organohalogens?” The first review provided evidence that seems to answer this question for several halogenated metabolites (1). For example, in the case of sessile marine organisms, a chemical defense function for these compounds seems paramount, and excellent reviews on this topic are available (39, 2514–2520). Nevertheless, a clear function for most of the identified biogenic organohalogens is presently unknown.
While natural chloromethane may have several functions (42), in Basidiomycetes wood-rot fungi (Phellinus, Inonotus, Fomitosporia, Hymenochaete, Phaeolus, and Fomitopsis) (59) chloromethane is a methyl donor in the biosynthesis of veratryl alcohol, the first step of which is methylation of 4-hydroxybenzoic acid. A second methylation of isovanillic acid affords ultimately veratryl alcohol, the function of which in these fungi is to stabilize lignin peroxidase thus promoting lignin degradation (2521).
Keywords
These keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2009 Springer-Verlag/Wien
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Gribble, G.W. (2009). Natural Function. In: Naturally Occurring Organohalogen Compounds - A Comprehensive Update. Fortschritte der Chemie organischer Naturstoffe / Progress in the Chemistry of Organic Natural Products, vol 91. Springer, Vienna. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-211-99323-1_6
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-211-99323-1_6
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Vienna
Print ISBN: 978-3-211-99322-4
Online ISBN: 978-3-211-99323-1
eBook Packages: Chemistry and Materials ScienceChemistry and Material Science (R0)