Biosynthesis, chemical synthesis, combinatorial synthesis, enzymatic synthesis, enzymes and genetics are subjects of considerable interest. These themes are dealt with in three areas of current bioorganic research. Deoxysugars and deoxy- oligosaccharides are important structural moieties in bio- active natural products. What is their contribution to the mode of action and how can they be studied? Synthetic strategies, biosynthesis and the genetics involved are presented. The second review article, on non-template based multienzyme systems, addresses the question why polyketides are the most diverse group of natural products. Polyketide syntheses are compared with other non-template multienzyme systems. The third review article deals with angucycline antibiotics, the largest subgroup of polycyclic aromatic polyketides.