Production of Natural Flavoring Materials by Microbial Action

3 Production of Natural Flavoring Materials BY Microbial Action 

Unlike enzymatic reactions, microorganisms have the ability to perform multiple reactions, and they do not require cofacors for regeneration (albeit they require nutrients). They may be used to generate a flavor compound from a nonvolatile precursor (e.g., produce a lactone from castor oil), to effect the bioconversion of one volatile to another (e.g., valencene to nootkatone), or effect a chiral resolution (a racemic mixture of menthol). The primary limitation of using microoganisms for 

FIGURE 9.10 Enantiospecific alcoholysis of karahanaenol acetate hy Pseudomonas cepacia lipase. (I) terpinolene oxide (II) (R)-karahanaenol and (III) (S)-karahanaenol acetate. (From Roy, A. J. Agric. Food Chem., 47, 12, 1999. With permission.) 

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