The research that I will conduct as a University Scholar pertains to a unique group of natural products produced by microbes called thaxtomins. Thaxtomins are virulence factors of many plant pathogenic Streptomyces strains and demonstrate potent herbicidal activity. As resistance to current widely- used agricultural herbicides increases, there is a strong need to develop new, effective herbicides with new target sites that can be produced in an economic and environmentally friendly manner. That is why I will work to produce thaxtomin analogs by using biosynthetic enzymes, a process which is cheaper, greener, and more efficient than existing chemical synthesis routes.