Bacterial Biosynthesis of a Multipotent Stilbene

Commuting between kingdoms: The biosynthesis of the only nonplant stilbene 1 from Photorhabdus bacteria has been solved by identification of all the genes involved in its biosynthesis and by feeding experiments. Stilbene 1 is derived from the condensation of two β-ketoacyl thioesters and is required for the normal development of Heterorhabditis nematodes, the natural host of Photorhabdus.