Lactams, cyclic carboxamide acids, are important building blocks as monomers for the manufacture of polyamides (nylons), with a market of millions of tons per year. Likewise, their non-natural building blocks, straight chain ω-amino acids, also have a wide range of applications as pharmaceuticals, therapeutic agents, and precursors to other platform chemicals. Current industrial lactam production requires petrochemically-derived routes that involve the use of harsh chemicals and reaction conditions. Microbial production provides a more sustainable method for production, from cost effective renewable resources. This review provides an extensive overview of progress toward the microbial production of lactams, particularly 4C butyrolactam, 5C valerolactam and 6C caprolactam, and their ω-amino acid precursors. Additionally, recent advances in the field as well as proposed microbial production pathways will be discussed, as well as future perspectives for the production of these important bulk chemicals.

内酰胺，环状羧酰胺酸，作为生产聚酰胺（尼龙）的单体，是重要的组成部分，每年的市场量为数百万吨。同样，它们的非天然结构单元（直链ω-氨基酸）也具有广泛的用途，可作为药物，治疗剂和其他平台化学品的前体。当前的工业内酰胺生产需要石油化学衍生的路线，该路线涉及使用苛刻的化学品和反应条件。利用经济高效的可再生资源，微生物生产为生产提供了更可持续的方法。这篇综述广泛地概述了内酰胺，特别是4C丁内酰胺，5C戊内酰胺和6C己内酰胺及其ω-氨基酸前体在微生物生产方面的进展。另外，