Is Stereoselectivity a Problem? Try Enzymes

Stereoselectivity is a major issue in synthetic organic chemistry. The use of chiral reagents and catalysts can solve the problem to a greater extent. But there are problems associated with the use of these chemicals as they may be expensive, hard to get, and most of the time not friendly for the environment. Enzymes, the biological catalysts, have been used as chiral catalysts for carrying out stereoselective reactions, mainly because of their specific nature. Enzymes are proven to be environmentally benign.

The production of enantiomerically pure chemicals is the demand of the pharmaceutical industry and this demand is very well met by the use of enzymes. The active site of enzymes is chiral and thus very much selective. Enzymes are proteins in nature, which catalyze a variety of reactions inside our body and have been utilized in vitro as well. Still there are some drawbacks associated with the use of enzymes as they may be unstable, their activity is dependent on the concentration of substrate, and they have a narrow range of substrate specificity. These problems have very much been overcome by directed evolution in which the enzymes are engineered to obtain the desired results.

PC: chem.chem.rochester.edu