Kevin D. Walker photo
Kevin D. Walker
Assistant Professor
Chemistry and
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
  • Ph.D. 1997, University of Washington
  • Postdoctoral Researcher, 1997-1999, Washington State University, Institute of Biological Chemistry
  • Assistant Scientist (2000-2003), Washington State University, Institute of Biological Chemistry

walke284@msu.edu
208 Chemistry Building
Michigan State University
East Lansing, MI 48824-1322
Office: 517-355-9715 x257

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Kevin D. Walker

Research Interests

salvia plants and salvinorin AFunctional Analysis of Enzymes on Biosynthetic Pathways of Plant-derived Bioactive Compounds

Our research uses a multidisciplinary approach to elucidate biosynthetic pathways of secondary metabolites that have a potentially beneficial biological effect. Acquisition and characterization of the genes, and corresponding gene products, on various pathways to bioactive compounds provides the field of natural products biochemistry with tools for potential application in the biotransformation of natural products or synthetically-derived chemicals that are non-native substrates of the isolated enzymes. These functionally-defined genes can also be bioengineered into a suitable host organism to potentially alter the metabolic profile of interesting molecules in vivo. MORE

Recent Publications


Mutatu, W., Klettke, K.L., Foster, C, and Walker, K.D. 2007. Unusual Mechanism for an Aminomutase Rearrangement: Retention of Configuration at the Migration Termini. Biochemistry 46(34), 9785-9794. Link to publication

Klettke KL, Sanyal S, Mutatu W, Walker KD. 2007. β-Styryl- and β-Aryl-β-alanine Products of Phenylalanine Aminomutase Catalysis. J Am Chem Soc. 129(22):6988-9. Link to publication. SYNFACT of the Month. (SYNFACT highlights compelling scientific constributions made to journals of organic chemistry.)

Loncaric C, Ward AF, Walker KD. 2007. Expression of an acetyl-CoA synthase and a CoA-transferase in Escherichia coli to produce modified taxanes in vivo. Biotechnol J. 2(2):266-74. Link to publication

Loncaric, C., Merriweather, E., and Walker, K. D. 2006. Profiling a Taxol Pathway 10β-Acetyltransferase: Assessment of the Specificity and the Production of Baccatin III by In Vivo Acetylation in E. coli, Chemistry and Biology 13: 309-317. Link to publication

Walker, K.D., Klettke, K., Akiyama, T., and Croteau, R. 2004. Cloning, heterologous expression, and characterization of a phenylalanine aminomutase involved in taxol biosynthesis, J. Biol. Chem. 279: 53947-53954. Link to publication

Jennewein, S., Wildung, M.R., Chau, M., Walker, K., and Croteau, R. 2004. Random sequencing of an induced Taxus cell cDNA library for identification of clones involved in taxol biosynthesis, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 101, 9149-9154. Link to publication

Croteau, R.B., Walker, K.D., Schoendorf, A., and Wildung, M.R. 2003. Cloning of transacylases of the paclitaxel biosynthetic pathway in Taxus. pp. 135, Cont-in-part of U S Ser No 866,570, (Washington State University Research Foundation, USA). Application: U.S.

Taxus, Walker, K., Long, R., and Croteau, R. 2002. The final acylation step in taxol biosynthesis: cloning of the taxoid C13-side chain N-benzoyltransferase. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 99, 9166-9171.MORE