Non-reducing polyketide synthase; part of the gene cluster that mediates the biosynthesis of mycophenolic acid (MPA), the first isolated antibiotic natural product in the world obtained from a culture of Penicillium brevicompactum in 1893 (PubMed:21398490, PubMed:21398493). MpaC catalyzes the synthesis of 5-methylorsellinic acid (5MOA) via the condensation of 1 acetyl-CoA starter unit with 3 malonyl-CoA units and one methylation step (PubMed:21398493). The first step of the pathway is the synthesis of 5-methylorsellinic acid (5MOA) by the cytosolic polyketide synthase mpaC. 5MOA is then converted to the phthalide compound 5,7-dihydroxy-4,6-dimethylphthalide (DHMP) by the endoplasmic reticulum-bound cytochrome P450 monooxygenase mpaDE. MpaDE first catalyzes hydroxylation of 5-MOA to 4,6-dihydroxy-2-(hydroxymethyl)-3-methylbenzoic acid (DHMB). MpaDE then acts as a lactone synthase that catalyzes the ring closure to convert DHMB into DHMP. The next step is the prenylation of DHMP by the Golgi apparatus-associated prenyltransferase mpaA to yield farnesyl-DHMP (FDHMP). The ER-bound oxygenase mpaB then mediates the oxidative cleavage the C19-C20 double bond in FDHMP to yield FDHMP-3C via a mycophenolic aldehyde intermediate. The O-methyltransferase mpaG catalyzes the methylation of FDHMP-3C to yield MFDHMP-3C. After the cytosolic methylation of FDHMP-3C, MFDHMP-3C enters into peroxisomes probably via free diffusion due to its low molecular weight. Upon a peroxisomal CoA ligation reaction, catalyzed by a beta-oxidation component enzyme acyl-CoA ligase ACL891, MFDHMP-3C-CoA would then be restricted to peroxisomes for the following beta-oxidation pathway steps. The peroxisomal beta-oxidation machinery than converts MFDHMP-3C-CoA into MPA_CoA, via a beta-oxidation chain-shortening process. Finally mpaH acts as a peroxisomal acyl-CoA hydrolase with high substrate specificity toward MPA-CoA to release the final product MPA (PubMed:21398490, PubMed:22544261) (Probable). acetyl-CoA + H(+) + 3 malonyl-CoA + S-adenosyl-L-methionine = 5-methylorsellinate + 3 CO2 + 4 CoA + S-adenosyl-L-homocysteine Secondary metabolite biosynthesis; terpenoid biosynthesis. Multidomain protein; including a starter unit:ACP transacylase (SAT) that selects the starter unit; a ketosynthase (KS) that catalyzes repeated decarboxylative condensation to elongate the polyketide backbone; a malonyl-CoA:ACP transacylase (MAT) that selects and transfers the extender unit malonyl-CoA; a product template (PT) domain that controls the immediate cyclization regioselectivity of the reactive polyketide backbone; and an acyl-carrier protein (ACP) that serves as the tether of the growing and completed polyketide via its phosphopantetheinyl arm (By similarity). Loses the ability to produce mycophenolic acid (MPA) and several MPA-related compounds, such as MPA diol lactone, 4-O-mycophenolate, and deacetyl pebrolide (PubMed:21398490).