Processes deracemization

Figure 5.2 Cyclic deracemization process involving sequential enzyme-catalyzed oxidation and nonenzymatic reduction.

Figure 5.3 Progression of an ideal cyclic deracemization process.

It is well known that certain microorganisms are able to effect the deracemization of racemic secondary alcohols with a high yield of enantiomerically enriched compounds. These deracemization processes often involve two different alcohol dehydrogenases with complementary enantiospedficity. In this context Porto ef al. [24] have shown that various fungi, induding Aspergillus terreus CCT 3320 and A. terreus CCT 4083, are able to deracemize ortho- and meta-fluorophenyl-l-ethanol in good... 

Other racemization systems that may be amenable to conversion to deracemization processes in future have recently been reported by Faber and coworkers [33]. Resting cells of L. paracasei have been used for biocatalytic racemization of open-chain and cyclic dialkyl-, alkyl-aryl-, and diaryl-substituted acyloins (29/30) (Figure 5.20). Both... 

For instance, styrene oxide was resolved by whole cells of Aspergillus niger and Beauveria bassiana via two different pathways showing matching enantio- and regioselectivities with excellent results (Scheme 8). Combination of the two biocatalysts employing a deracemization process in a single reactor led to R) phenylethane-l,2-diol as the sole product in 98% ee and 85% isolated yield [58]. 

During the past few years great efforts have been made to overcome the 50% threshold of enzyme-catalyzed KRs. Among the methods developed, deracemization processes have attracted considerable attention. Deracemizations are processes during which a racemate is converted into a non-racemic product in 100% theoretical yield without intermediate separation of materials [5]. This chapter aims to provide a summary of chemoenzymatic dynamic kinetic resolutions (DKRs) and chemoenzymatic cyclic deracemizations. 

It should be mentioned that the great majority of dynamic kinetic resolutions reported so far are carried out in organic solvents, whereas all cyclic deracemizations are conducted in aqueous media. Therefore, formally, this latter methodology would not fit the scope of this book, which is focused on the synthetic uses of enzymes in non-aqueous media. However, to fully present and discuss the applications and potentials of chemoenzymatic deracemization processes for the synthesis of enantiopure compounds, chemoenzymatic cyclic de-racemizations will also be briefly treated in this chapter, as well as a small number of other examples of enzymatic DKR performed in water. 

Turner has applied this deracemization process to a very interesting tandem transformation where y-amino ketones are transformed into enantiopure secondary amines via intramolecular reductive animation followed by deracemization (Scheme 5.41) [80]. 

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