Enzymatic attack initiation

Chain degradation proceeds at the oxidised sites, where two different routes can be discerned. One way uses the p-hydroxy ketone functionalities introduced by the initial enzymatic attack as direct substrates in an aldolase-like scission reaction. The other way proceeds via further oxidation of this structure to a 1,3-diketone, which serves as a target structure for a hydrolase-type splitting enzyme. 

ITie work described in this chapter was initiated to determine the kinetics of enzymatic and microbial attack on blends containing starch and LDPE or starch, LDPE, and EAA. From the initial studies came a more general goal of identifying structural and compositional characteristics of blends (in general) that facilitate or retard degradation of the polysaccharide component. 

A specialized amino acid residue that serves as an essesn-tial electrophilic center in several enzymatic reactions, including those catalyzed by L-phenylalanine ammonia lyase (Reaction L-phenylalanine tranx-cinnamate + NH3) and L-histidine ammonia lyase (Reaction L-histi-dine urocanate + NH3). The former facilitates the elimination of ammonia and the pro-S hydrogen of phe-nylanine, and the initial step is nucleophilic attack of... 

Lipases catalyze the polymerization of lactones [Duda et al., 2002 Gross et al., 2001 Kobayashi, 1999 Kobayashi et al., 2001]. The reaction mechanism is similar to that for the enzymatic polymerization of hydroxyacids (Sec. 2-17a-2). Lipase reacts with lactone to produce enzyme-activated hydroxyacid and some of the latter reacts with water to produce hydroxyacid (Eqs. 7-81). Hydroxyacid and enzyme-activated hydroxyacid react to initiate polymerization (Eq. 7-82). Propagation proceeds by nucleophilic attack of... 

More recently, the degradation of a-pinene by Pseudomonas jluorescens NCIMB 11671 was described [97,98]. A novel pathway for the microbial breakdown of a-pinene (119) was proposed, Fig. (23). The attack is initiated by enzymatic oxygenation of the 1,2-double bond to form the epoxide (127). This epoxide then undergoes rapid rearrangement to produce a novel diunsaturated aldehyde, occurring as two isomeric forms. The primary product of the reaction (Z)-2-methyl-5-isopropylhexa-2,5-dien-l-al (trivial name isonovalal) (128) can undergo chemical isomerisation to the -form (novalal) (129). Isonovalal, the native form of... 

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