Optimization frequently entails modification, removal, or introduction of functional groups and stereocenters or more drastic remodeling of the basic scaffold to improve physicochemical
and pharmacokinetic properties. The structural diversity accessible by combinatorial biosynthetic methods is limited by the available biosynthetic pathways of the host
organism; however, the power of synthetic chemistry can
be harnessed to access a greater extent of possible modifications
and structural diversity than biosynthetic methods alone